Our Darkest Moments
by TwistedRocketPower
Summary: Tim and Abby are fighting to stay alive after they've been locked and abandoned in the back of a semi. With no leads as to where they are, the rest of the team must start from scratch and find them before it's too late.
1. Dinner

"Stupid, stupid, stupid excuse for a machine!"

Tim froze right outside of the elevator as he listened to Abby yelling… apparently at an inanimate object.

"You call yourself useful? Huh? To think, I picked you, I raised you from a wee new little baby, and now that you're all grown up THIS is how you treat me?"

Tim's eyebrows raised,_ 'Maybe now isn't such a good time,'_ He thought. He went to turn back and get on the elevator when he heard, "Tim! Get your butt in here!"

He grimaced, "Coming!" He called out right before entering the room.

"I heard the elevator ding. Why'd you wait so long out there?" She asked, hands on hips, glaring at him.

"I… I didn't want to disturb you and… whatever you were doing."

She pointed back at her refrigerator, "Look at it. Tell me what you see."

"A fridge," He replied slowly.

"Exactly." She turned back and stared at the fridge, "That means it's supposed to keep things _frigid_, right?"

He nodded, "Yes, it should."

"Then why isn't it, McGee?"

"It's broken."

"It's broken!" She agreed.

"Abbs, is there something else wrong?" Tim asked. He had seen her get frustrated before… but not like this. Not over a broken fridge.

She sighed and looked away from the fridge, "I don't know," She threw her arms up, "This whole case just seems… hinky."

"Yeah, I know. That's what we were just talking about upstairs."

"So it's not just me?" She walked to her computer, "I ran these tests last night before I left to go home," Up popped two different tests, "It said that the blood you guys found was AB negative. And fingerprint pattern was loop," She looked over at him as he stood right beside her, "Now today I come in and redid the tests, cause… well, you know Gibbs."

He nodded, "Yeah, I do."

She pulled up two other tests, "These are the results today. Blood type AB positive. Fingerprint pattern is whorl."

"How did that happen?"

"That's what I'd like to know!"

"How many times have you ran those tests today?"

"Four. All times I got AB positive and whorl. Except the first time, yesterday."

"Could someone have come in here last night and changed things after you left?"

She shook her head, "The only guy that comes in here at night is the janitor, and he wouldn't know how to do that… Even if he _did _know how, he wouldn't."

Tim tried to think of how this could happen, but he came up with nothing… Except Abby messing up the first time, but there was no way he was going to mention that. Besides, he knew that Abby wouldn't mess that up anyway.

"Are weird things happening in the bullpen too?"

"Always," Tim said with a small laugh, "But not with the case. All of our guts are just acting up."

"Well, you can add my gut to the list."

"I will." He went to leave and turned back for one last look… not that he stared at Abby or anything… but when he took that last look he noticed Abby still looked irritated as she walked back to the fridge, glaring at it.

"Abbs," He began, "You wanna go out to eat tonight? This case has been pretty crazy and I think we could both use a little breathing time."

She smiled, "That sounds like fun, Timmy. Going dutch?"

"No, tonight's my treat. Pick you up at seven?"

Her smile widened, "I'll be ready."

* * *

><p>They got off of work at six, so by the time Abby got home she had forty minutes to get ready. That was more than enough time. She and Tim went out like this a lot during tough or annoying cases, and he always took her to one of three places. She was more than okay with that cause in DC she had exactly three favorite restaurants.<p>

She took a shower than changed into clothes similar to what she was wearing before. Except this time her t-shirt was plain black instead of the words 'You wish' written on it.

She left her hair down instead of putting them back up into pigtails, but she kept the rubber bands around her wrist in case she got tired of having her hair down.

She looked at the clock on her stove. Two minutes until seven. She knew Tim was never late, if anything he was…

_Knock. Knock._

…early.

She smiled as she opened the door, "Hi Timmy," She said as she quickly looked him up and down, not wanting him to notice. He wore her favorite button up, black shirt with blue jeans… God, he was handsome.

"Hi, Abbs," He replied, returning the smile and also noticing her attire… which, although no one would think it if they met him, he was very attracted to, "Ready to go?"

She nodded, "All set. Just let me get my jacket."

She grabbed her jacket and folded it over her arm, then she walked out and locked her door. She and Tim linked arms as he walked her to his car.

* * *

><p>Two hours later they were walking out of the restaurant, both enjoying every moment of their dinner.<p>

The restaurant had been packed when they arrived, so Tim had to park a couple of blocks away.

"You let me eat too much, Timmy," Abby said as she held her stomach while they walked.

He laughed, "No way was I getting between you and lobster. Not after the fork incident last time."

"You tried to take the plate from me!" She defended.

"You told me to," He replied.

She nodded, "True."

They walked in silence for a little while.

Tim looked around, "Man, it's dead out here tonight. It was so busy before."

"I think there's a fair this week. Everyone's probably there now."

"Empty streets creep me out."

Abby laughed, "You're a federal agent, Timmy."

"I know. That's why they creep me out. I know what happens on empty streets."

"Oh please, stuff like that only happens in movies." She wrapped her arms around his arm and he sighed in contentment.

Just then a semi passed by on the street. It was so loud that neither Tim or Abby heard the men come up behind them. One man for Tim and one for Abby.

They both wrapped one hand around Tim and Abby's waist, and one over their faces, covering their noses with a cloth.

They both tried to fight off the attack, but the men were too strong. They couldn't last long anyway with breathing in the Chloroform.

Suddenly, everything went black.

* * *

><p><strong>I swore to myself that I wouldn't ever do more than one multi-chapter story at a time... Then this popped into my mind. <strong>

**I always write down ideas of what I want to write, then from those ideas I choose which idea I want to make into a story... That didn't happen here. The entire thing just randomly came to me and I had to write it out.**

**This is a lot different from my last McGee/Abby story Broken Angel... LOTS more McAbbyness here ;)**

**Please review and let me know what you think!**


	2. Waking Up

Tim groaned as he began to wake up. His eyes slowly opened, then closed back, then opened again. He could feel the wood floor below him. He knew something was wrong, but he couldn't get his thoughts together. He slowly turned his head from one side to the other. That's when he saw the body lying on the other side of the room.

_'Abby!'_ He thought as the memories of the evening flooded into his head.

He stood up, but the room swayed and he dropped back to his knees. "Abby!" He said in a whispered yell as he crawled over to her, "Abby!"

He immediately checked for a pulse, and sighed in relief when he found one. Her head was turned toward the wall, so he gently moved it so she would be facing him. He lightly patted her cheek, "Abby. Abby, wake up."

"Hmmm," She groaned.

"Come on, wake up."

Her face scrunched, "Timmy? Why're you in my coffin?" She mumbled, eyes still closed.

"We're not in your coffin. I don't know where we are."

"What're you talking about?"

"Abby, open your eyes!"

She sighed and opened them, then jumped up into a sitting position, "Oh my God, where are we?" She exclaimed.

"I have no idea."

"What happened?"

"I just remember… someone coming up behind me and… putting a cloth over my face."

Hearing Tim say it made the memory flash into Abby's mind, "That happened to me too."

Tim looked around inside the long and narrow room, "I think we're in the back of a semi."

"What?"

"That's what it looks like… from what I can see."

There was only a little bit of light shining in from up at the top right wall where someone had cut out an opening.

"And we're definitely moving," Abby added, "Help me up."

He took a hold of her hand and they both stood up. Abby quickly placed her other hand against the cold, steel wall to keep her balance, "This is not good, Timmy," Abby said, her voice shaking.

"Let's just not panic," Tim replied, trying to stay calm, "Maybe it's not as bad as it seems."

She slowly turned her head towards him, "Not as bad as it seems? Are you kidding me! We were drugged and thrown into the back of a semi! I'd say, it's panic time!"

"Keep your voice down," He warned, "They might come back here if they think we're awake."

"They? Who's they?"

"I don't know, I just know that there's more than one."

"What are we supposed to do? And don't say "I don't know" again!"

He shook his head, "I'm… not sure."

Abby rolled her eyes.

"I'm gonna go look out the opening thing," Tim said as he let go of her hand and slowly began walking over to it, trying not to fall as the semi rocked.

"It's up too high, you'll never reach."

He now stood just underneath the opening, "Then come over here and I'll lift you up."

She walked over to the other side, then held onto the wall as she walked up to him, "Are you crazy?"

"What else is there to do? There's nothing in here. No boxes to get on, no... anything."

"You probably weigh less than I do!"

He rolled his eyes, "Fine. Do you want to put me on _your_ shoulders then?"

"Ugh! Bend over!"

"Take off your boots first."

"What?"

"Those things are like thirty pounds!"

She sat back down on the floor and began taking off the boots, "You realize how stupid this conversation is at a time like this, don't you?"

* * *

><p>"Good morning, Ziva!" Tony said with a big smile as he walked into the bullpen.<p>

"Good morning, Tony. You seem horribly chipper this morning."

"_Awfully_ chipper, Ziva, awfully."

"Whatever… What is with the attitude?"

"I had a great night last night."

Ziva smiled slyly, "Big date?"

"Yeah."

"With who?"

"Tom Selleck."

Ziva's eyebrows furrowed, "That is weird in so many ways."

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Zee. I watched a six hour marathon of Magnum last night. They played all my favorite episodes."

"Do you not have the entire series on DVD anyway?"

He nodded, "Well, yeah."

"So, why do you watch it on TV?"

"Because, Ziva."

"Well, if you watched your DVD you would not have to bother with commercials."

Tony glared at her, "I'm tired of this conversation," He looked over at Tim's desk, "Where's McSlimFast?"

Ziva shrugged, "I do not know. He has not arrived yet."

Tony smiled, "Alright! I made it here before Mr. McPunctual."

"Please tell me you are not going to go on and on about it once he arrives."

"Who me? Would I do such a thing?"

"Yes, you would," Gibbs said as he walked into the bullpen with a cup of coffee.

"Hey, Boss. Didn't know you were here."

"That's cause I got here on time, unlike you."

Tony laughed nervously, "Oh, that was just… traffic sucked. You know, lots of it."

"Mhm." Gibbs sat down at his desk, "Where's McGee?"

"Not here," Ziva replied.

"Call him," Gibbs stood back up, "I'm going down to Abby."

Gibbs walked to the elevator and Tony looked to make sure he was gone, "You ever wonder why he even sits down when he gets right back up?"

Ziva picked up her desk phone, "No."

* * *

><p>"All I see are trees. A lot of trees."<p>

"Any other cars?"

"No, but we're on the far right side of the road. Even if there are other cars, they couldn't see us."

Tim sighed, "Okay, I'm bringing you down."

Tim bent down and Abby got off of his shoulders, "What are we gonna do, Tim?"

"I already told you I don't know."

"We have to do something! We're gonna die back here!"

"We are not going to die, Abby. We just have to wait until the driver stops for gas, then we make a lot of noise. Someone will hear us and help us."

Abby wiped the sweat off of her forehead, "And what if they don't stop for gas? What if they have enough gas to get to where they want to go? What if they take us to an abandoned building then fillet us like fish? What if-"

"Abby, stop!" Tim walked along the wall, just getting the feel of exactly how big the area was, "Ziva and Tony went through something like this before. They got through it, and we will too."

"Tony and Ziva were not drugged and thrown into the back of a truck. They were able to leave a trail of money. They had weapons. You guys had some clue as to where they were last seen. You guys had a place to start. WE don't have anything to leave a trail of. WE have no weapons. NO ONE has a clue as to where we last were at. NO ONE has a place to start. This is nothing like that!"

"Okay, Abby, I get that you're scared, but freaking out right now is not going to help."

"What else am I supposed to do?"

Tim sighed, "If we're not out of here within... six hours, then I you can freak out as much as you want to, deal?"

She glared at him, "Fine… You have a watch?"

* * *

><p>Gibbs stormed back into the bullpen.<p>

"He is not answering either phone, Gibbs," Ziva said.

Gibbs began dialing a number on his phone, "Abby hasn't come into work either."

"Should I keep trying McGee?"

"Yes." Gibbs hung up after letting Abby's cell phone ring ten times. He cursed, "Tony, try Abby's house."

"Yes, Boss."

Gibbs waited.

"Still no answer from McGee."

"Nothing from Abby," Tony added. He saw the worry in Gibbs' eyes, "Boss, it could be nothing. Abby and McGee do stuff together sometimes, maybe they fell asleep watching a movie last night or something."

Gibbs shook his head, "No. Abby wouldn't be late for work. Neither would McGee… Something's wrong."

* * *

><p><strong>Just gotta mention how awesome you guys are! Thanks for all the reviews :) I love them!<strong>

**Side note: On my spell check, the suggested word for McSlimFast was Maximized. Am I the only one who finds that funny? It's almost 1am, so maybe that's why.**


	3. Slowly

The truck continued on for two more hours. Which meant two more hours of Abby pacing back and forth, trying not to fall. And two hours of Tim sitting, trying to think of ways to get out of this mess, and wondering why this all seemed so familiar.

They had looked everywhere for their cell phones, but realized the men had taken them away after they had been drugged and kidnapped.

"A knife!" Abby exclaimed suddenly, "You have a knife!"

"I do?"

She nodded, "Gibbs rule number nine. Never go anywhere without a knife."

"Abbs, uh, I… I don't have a knife."

She glared at him, "What do you mean?"

"Well, I didn't really think I'd need it to go out to dinner. It's on my kitchen counter."

"How's that gonna help us?"

"It's not… How would it help us anyway?" Tim asked, "What are we gonna do, cut our way through steel?"

"Pick the lock!"

"It locks from the outside, Abby!"

"Well, then if they stopped and passed by the little opening, you could have reached out and stab them!"

"Oh, that's smart," He mumbled.

"What did you say?"

"I said, that's smart, but in a sarcastic way, meaning, that's NOT smart!"

Abby crossed her arms, "Don't yell at me!"

"You started it!"

"Did not!"

Tim rolled his eyes.

Abby walked up closer to him, "Why isn't it smart?" She asked, clearly annoyed.

He looked up at her, "Because, they're the only ones who may potentially open the door. And when they do, that's our chance to escape. We stab them, they won't open the door."

"And what if they open the door with guns in hand, ready to fire."

"Then we're screwed…" Ti sighed, "Either way, we're screwed."

Abby slid down the wall and sat next to Tim, "Sorry I yelled."

"Not your fault. Neither of us are at our best right now."

"You think we'll get out of here?"

"…Until we're dead, I'll always believe we're getting out of here."

They were both silent for a while, then Tim spoke up, "Why don't _you_ have a knife?"

"I wouldn't carry weapons."

"You did when your stalker ex-boyfriend was after you."

"Different circumstances."

* * *

><p>"Anything?" Gibbs asked as Tony entered the bullpen.<p>

He shook his head, "No, McGee's car isn't at his place, but nothing's out of order. I picked his lock and everything was fine inside his apartment."

"Put a b-"

"Bolo out on his Porsche? Done, Boss."

Just then, Ziva exited the elevator, "Nothing at Abby's place. Her car is there and everything inside her apartment is in its usual order."

"Did Abby leave work at the same time you guys did?"

"Yes," Tony replied, "She and I shared the elevator."

"Did she say anything to you about where she might be going, or if she was even going anywhere?"

"I asked her if she wanted to go with me to get a few drinks and she said that she couldn't, she was busy. She didn't say anything else though."

"What about you, Ziva?"

"Neither of them said anything to me. I didn't see Abby before I left. Tim and I walked to our cars together because we were parked beside one another, but all we talked about was the oddness of the case we are working on."

Gibbs looked back at Tim's desk, "Get on his computer. Check his calendar. See if he wrote down anything for last night," Gibbs sighed in annoyance, "And what about their cell phones? Somebody needs to run a trace and find them!"

"I will do that right away, Gibbs," Ziva said as she went to her desk and sat down.

Tony was already at Tim's desk, pulling up his calendar.

Gibbs cursed under his breath, his patience becoming nonexistent, "I'm going down to Ducky."

As Gibbs left, Ziva and Tony shared a concerned glance, then went back to work.

* * *

><p>"Hello, Jethro," Ducky said with a smile as Gibbs entered autopsy, "I can now confirm how this young man died. He did indeed suffocate in the back of that semi which he was found. Just like the others-"<p>

"I'm not here about that, Duck. Abby and McGee are missing."

"Oh dear. What happened?"

Jimmy listened closely as he sat at Ducky's desk, going over paperwork.

"We don't know yet. They never came into work this morning. McGee's car is missing. Neither of their homes have been touched."

"You think they were taken together?"

"I think that whoever took one, took both. I'm not sure if they were together at the time or not."

"They were," Jimmy chimed in as he turned in the desk chair and stood up.

Gibbs turned towards him, "What?"

Jimmy suddenly got nervous, "Well, I- I was… I-"

"Spit it out, Palmer."

"I was passing by the lab today, going to the vending machines. I usually go to the vending machines on the main floor, but they were out of the cookies I wanted-"

"Palmer!" Gibbs exclaimed.

"Right, right. I heard Tim ask Abby if she wanted to go out to dinner. She accepted and he was going to pick her up at seven."

"I gotta go," Gibbs said as he hurried out of the room, "Thanks, Palmer," He called back.

"Let me know when you know anything, Jethro!"

"I will, Duck!"

The autopsy doors closed and Ducky stared at Jimmy suspiciously, "You heard all of that, just passing by?"

"I- I may have been walking sort of… slowly."

"Mhm."

* * *

><p>Tim and Abby stood up, after sitting for another hour.<p>

"How long do you think they've been driving for?" Abby asked.

"Including the time we were passed out? No idea. But since we've woken up," Tim looked at his watch, "A little over three hours."

"Three hours?" Abby repeated in disbelief, "It seems like its been a lot longer than that."

"I know."

The semi suddenly turned, throwing them both off guard. They slammed into the side of the truck.

"Ow!" Abby exclaimed, holding onto her head.

Tim grabbed his shoulder, "Are you okay?" He asked.

She nodded, "Yeah, just bumped my head. You?"

"Shoulder hurts, but it's fine."

"Maybe we should just sit back down."

"Good idea."

As they went to sit, the semi came to a screeching halt.

"What was that?" Abby asked nervously.

"We stopped."

"What are they gonna do to us?"

Tim shook his head, "Nothing," He replied. He now knew why it all seemed so familiar to him… And he also knew that they were going to be left there to die… slowly.

* * *

><p><strong>Just so you guys don't wonder what happened in case I don't update: I'm going to be staying at my grandma's house from Thursday until Sunday evening. I don't know whether that means I'll have less or more time to write, but if I don't update for a few days, I haven't forgotten about the story. <strong>

**I'm kind of even, possibly leaving you guys hanging here for like 4-5 days. haha Sorry! I may be able to update though. Just not sure.**

**Thank you all for the reviews :) I love them like Abby loves giving and receiving hugs!**


	4. The Note

"'How do you know?" Abby asked in a whispered tone, "What if they come in now and kill us?"

"They're not," He answered plainly.

"We need to look out. Put me on your shoulders again."

"There's no reason to, there's nothing out there."

"You don't know that," Abby replied, "Come on, lift me."

Tim sighed, but bent over. She climbed onto his shoulders and he yelled.

She immediately got off, "What? What happened?"

He held onto his shoulder, "It… It just hurts a little bit still."

"You said that your shoulder was fine."

"It is."

She put her hands on her hips, "You don't yell and grab your shoulder when it's fine, Tim."

"Well, it's still sore. I just knocked it less than two minutes ago. It'll be fine, in a little bit."

Abby began to pace, "Okay, so we can't look out right now… Maybe they'll open the doors and tell us what's going on. I mean, that may be worse, but really, how could it get worse than this?"

"They're not going to open the doors," Tim replied calmly.

She stopped and stared at him, "Okay, how do you know? You've told me, a few times now, about things that they're _not_ gonna do."

Tim shrugged, "Just guessing."

She shook her head, "No, no, what _I'm_ doing, is guessing. What _you're_ doing, is stating apparent facts. How do you-"

Something suddenly slid across the only opening in the truck, making it pitch black inside. Abby jumped and screamed, "What was that?"

Tim took a deep breath. He couldn't lie to her, "That's them… shutting out our oxygen supply."

"What?" She yelled, turning towards the sound of his voice. "No, no, no, no, no! They can't do that! They-"

"Abby! Stop!.." Tim walked over to her… well, where he figured she'd be. He reached out and touched her arm. She gasped.

"It's just me," He said, "You need to sit down, and take calm, regular breaths."

"I… I can't."

"Yes, you can. We both will. Let's go over to the side and sit down."

He put his arm around her and walked with her to the side of the truck, holding his other arm out so they wouldn't ram right into the wall. When they reached the side, they turned and sat down, their backs against the wall.

"Remember, calm and regular breaths."

She nodded, "Okay."

"If I tell you how I know what I know, will you stay calm?"

"Y… Yes."

He wasn't sure if he believed her, but he couldn't hide the truth from her. That would be wrong. She needed to know what may possibly lie ahead.

"Do you remember the case we're working on? The one where you ran the tests and got two different results?"

"Mhm."

"Well, the men who died… They were all found in the back of semi's at secluded areas. They had been drugged, thrown into the semi, driven to another location, then left… to die."

"Oh my God, I forgot!" Abby replied, beginning to panic as tears fell down her face, "Oh my God!"

Tim turned and looked at her. He could see a her a little bit now as his eyes had adjusted to the darkness, "Abby, stop. You said you wouldn't panic."

"I- I'm sorry."

"The only thing panicking will do is make you breath harder, which makes the oxygen-"

"I know what it does, Tim."

Tim could tell she was crying. He placed a hand under her chin and lifted her head to where they were staring at one another, "They will find us, Abby. Gibbs, Tony, Ziva, all of them. They won't stop looking until they find us."

She wrapped her arms around him, placing her head on his chest, "I'm scared, Timmy," She said as she cried.

"I know, Abbs. I know."

* * *

><p>Tony quickly hung up his phone and stood up, "Got a location on Tim's car. It's outside of a restaurant on third street. Manager said he saw the bolo on the news and knew this was the car. It's been in the same spot since last night. Looks like the autopsy gremlin heard right."<p>

Gibbs was already standing, getting his gun, badge and ID out of his desk, "Let's go!"

He didn't have to say it twice, Tony and Ziva were already ready to go.

* * *

><p>"There is his car," Ziva said as they neared the restaurant. Gibbs slammed on his break, then parked. They all got out of the car and walked to Tim's Porsche.<p>

Gibbs looked around, "Two security cameras, that I can see," He said, pointing to them both.

"I will make sure to get the video from them," Ziva replied.

Gibbs nodded.

They reached the car and Tony peeked inside, "I see Tim's keys, but the door is locked."

"Not anymore," Gibbs said as he opened the driver side door.

Tony looked shocked, "Wow, Boss! That's gotta be a new record-"

"Shut up, Tony."

"Yes, Boss."

Gibbs got Tim's keys from the driver seat, and Ziva pulled something out from underneath the passenger seat. She unwrapped it, "Abby's jacket." She felt inside the pockets and found her house key.

Tony looked down where something had fallen out of Abby's jacket and onto the gound. It was a piece of paper.

Tony picked it up and read, "Uh, Boss?"

"Yeah?"

"This isn't good."

"Well, what is it?"

"It's a note."

Gibbs rolled his eyes, "No duh, DiNozzo, what does it say?"

"It says, 'You should have found the others sooner. Maybe, if it's some of your own, you'll work faster. Hope you find them quicker than you found the others…'" His voice trailed off.

"Is there more?" Ziva asked.

"Yeah."

"What?"

Tony paused for a moment, then continued, "'They have about forty-eight hours until they die. Find them after that amount of time, and all you'll see and smell are your precious team members corpses. Good luck.'"

Tony looked up at Gibbs and Ziva. They all stood there, speechless.

* * *

><p><strong>I tried to add this chapter last night, but the website wouldn't work for me! BLERG! Anyway, here it is now. Enjoy!<strong>

**Please review and let me know what you think.**


	5. The Video

"This is strange," Ziva said as they all sat at their desks, busily working to figure out where Tim and Abby were at.

"Find something on the video?" Tony asked as both he and Gibbs stood up and walked over to Ziva's desk.

She looked up, "Huh? Oh, no. Just… this letter. It does not match up to the previous semi murders."

"Wha' do ya mean, Ziva?" Gibbs asked.

"Well, with the other men who were taken and killed, the killer, or killers, didn't leave notes then. Why didn't they leave a note with the third victim, saying we should have found the second sooner? Or leave a note with the fourth, saying we should have found the third?"

"Maybe they just now decided we were taking too long?" Tony guessed.

Ziva shook her head, "No, this just does not feel right."

"Your gut talkin' to ya?" Gibbs asked.

Ziva looked up at him, confused, "Guts can speak?"

Gibbs rolled his eyes, "What doesn't feel right, Ziva?"

"A few days ago we were talking about how whoever our killers were, they enjoyed thinking about those men dying in the back of those trucks. They," She looked at Tony, "_Got off_ on it, yes?"

Tony nodded.

"Yes," She continued, "They would not be writing letters telling us to find what they enjoy most. They would want Tim and Abby to die. That is their joy."

"So, this is a copycat?" Tony questioned.

"Seems more personal," Gibbs replied.

Tony was confused, "Personal for Tim and Abby? They're like the two people in the world that have no enemies… Well, none that would want to kill them... anymore. I mean, there are people that Tim's put away that like him. They write him, thanking him for being so kind!"

Gibbs sighed, "I'm not talking about McGee and Abbs. I'm talking about whoever took them. They have something against the team, and this case."

"Could this be for attention?" Ziva asked.

"If it is, then we're not givin' it to them."

"What do you mean, Boss?"

"Right now our focus is on McGee and Abby, nothing else matters. We'll figure out who did it, _after_ we bring them back home safely."

Tony and Ziva nodded in agreement.

"Anything on their cell phones?" Gibbs asked.

"Nothing," Ziva replied, "They seem to have been turned off."

"What about the videos?"

"I am fast forwarding both of them right now. They should be in view soon." She got up, then put both videos, side by side, up on the plasma. She stopped when Tim's car pulled up and parked.

"This is them parking and going into the restaurant."

"Fast forward it until they're walking out."

"Okay."

They all watched the screen as the video fast forwarded, showing people coming and going… mostly going.

"That's them!" Tony called out, louder than what was actually necessary.

Ziva pressed the play button.

The street was empty, except for Tim and Abby. From one video they could see them from behind, and the other from the front.

They watched as Tim and Abby walked, and laughed.

"I feel like I am spying on them," Ziva said as they watched Abby wrap her arms around Tim's arm.

That feeling didn't last long as the semi passed by just in time for two people, dressed in black from head to toe, to sneak up behind Tim and Abby, grab them, drug them, and throw them into the back of the semi… which had stopped up the street and now only the back was visible. Then one of the people came back, carrying Tim and Abby's things, and put them in the car.

"That was… quick," Tony said in a slight shock as the person disappeared out of sight and the semi drove away.

Gibbs sighed, "They spent a lot of time planning."

"They did not even have a chance to fight back." Ziva rewound the video and they watched again, "That drug must have been very strong."

"The time on the video is just after nine," Tony began, "It's ten fifteen now, and the note said we have forty-eight hours, so we have..."

"We have thirty five hours and forty three minutes left," Ziva finished for him.

"Then let's stop wasting time," Gibbs said impatiently, "Ziva, take the video down to cyber-crimes, get one of them down there to… do whatever the heck they do to videos. I want it as clear as possible! And I want it done fast!"

"Right away, Gibbs."

"DiNozzo, pull up all of the locations that the previous semi's were found. See if there's a pattern that we missed before."

Tony nodded, "On it, Boss."

Gibbs stood still for a moment, then took a deep breath. He went to his desk, grabbed his gear, then began to leave.

"Where are you going, Boss?"

"Going in the direction of that semi!"

"Need!…" Gibbs was already in the elevator, the door closing behind him, "Backup?" Tony sighed, rested his elbows on his desk, and rubbed his forehead, "We're gone get you out Abbs and Probster, just hang in there."

He sighed once again, then got back to work.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry for the lack of McGee and Abby, they'll be back (no duh, right?). I just felt that even though this is a TimAbby story, I still need to show the rest of the team, and I didn't want to overdo the chapter with going back and forth from the semi, to bullpen, to semi, to bullpen. I just kind of wanted a little chapter on how the rest of the team is taking things.**

**Hope you guys still enjoyed the chapter, even though it was short and lacked the main characters. Review and let me know what you think :)**


	6. Scared

***There are some spoilers from the newest episode in the A/N at the bottom. You have been warned! :)***

* * *

><p>"Help! Get us out! Help!" Abby yelled as she banged on the locked semi door, "Help!"<p>

"Abby, stop. Just stop," Tim begged. She had been doing that on and off, mostly on, for six hours now.

"No. Someone might pass by right when I stop!"

Tim stood up and walked to the other end of the room, where Abby was, "No one's going to pass by, Abby! We're in the middle of nowhere!"

"Those other men were found eventually, Tim! That means that someone _did_ pass by! It just took too long for them. Maybe if they would have yelled and banged on the door, they would still be alive!" She continued hitting the door, "Help!"

Tim took a hold of her arms and pulled them away, turning her to face him, "Abby, you have been doing that for hours! You need to rest for a while. You're going to rub your hands raw and make your throat sore. Not to mention, drain all the oxygen out of here. If you haven't noticed, we kind of need that oxygen!"

"Let go of me!" Abby exclaimed angrily through gritted teeth, "Now!"

"Not until you promise to stop the banging! It's the most annoying noise ever!"

Abby jerked away from Tim, "I will do what I want! If you don't like it, plug your ears!"

"This is insane! You're not even acting like yourself!"

"If you haven't noticed, we're not in our normal setting, McGee! Right now, I am trying to survive. I have been trying to call out for help, while you sit and do nothing!"

"I'm not doing nothing, I'm trying to conserve our oxygen, something you obviously don't care about! Would you like for us to die a few hours earlier?"

"No! I'd like to be at work, doing what I do best right now! But, instead I decide to go out with you, which leads me to this!" She yelled, throwing her arms up in the air.

"So now it's my fault?"

"You could have planned it for all I know!"

"Are you kidding me?" He laughed hysterically, "Yes, the night worked out great. Everything went perfectly! I got the drugs in ya, got us in the back of the semi, get you acting all hysterical thinking you're gonna die, and hope that you wanna _do it_ one last time! Then, right after, I somehow figure out an ingenious way to get us out of here, and I save us. Me, becoming your hero in the process. That's exactly what I wanted!"

"I knew it!"

"Oh my God! I was being sarcastic, Abby!"

"Oh, you think _now_ is a good time to make jokes?"

"Well, what else am I supposed to do? You've got the overreacting part taken care of."

"Oh shut up!"

"You!"

They both stood there, glaring at each other. Neither of them knew why they were so angry with one another. It wasn't like them to talk to each other that way, but they couldn't help it. They were angry, scared, thirsty, hungry, and sweaty.

Tim broke the glare and turned around. He began to unbutton his shirt.

"What are you doing?" Abby asked, placing a hand on her hip.

He turned back around to face her, "I'm taking off my shirt... but don't worry, I have an undershirt on, I'm not trying to seduce you," He said angrily, "I'm hot."

_'Yes, you are,'_ She thought, then quickly wiped the thought away, remembering she was mad at him.

Tim took off the shirt and threw it across the room, then walked to the back of the truck, and sat down.

Abby turned back to the door, and after a moment of silence, began banging on it again.

Tim groaned and covered his ears with his hands.

* * *

><p>"Agent David," A young man with dark brown hair, and eyes to match, said as he approached Ziva's desk.<p>

"Oh, Williams, you have information on the videos I gave you, yes?"

"What took so long?" Gibbs asked, clearly frustrated, as he walked over to them. He had gotten back from his little drive a couple of hours before, knowing how pointless it was in the first place. There was no way to tell where the semi went after it left the view of the video cameras. There were tons of directions it could have gone. Needless to say, Gibbs returned in a worse mood than when he left.

"It actually took me less time than normal, sir," Williams replied, no fear in his voice. He wasn't cocky, but he wasn't intimidated by Gibbs either.

"Six hours is _less_ time than normal?"

He nodded, "You don't understand technology, do you?"

Gibbs stared at him, "What did you find?"

"I'd explain how I did it, but you probably wouldn't get it, so I'll get right to the point. The people on the tape, that kidnapped your agents, are five foot five, and five foot seven."

Ziva's eyebrows furrowed, "That is small for men."

"Yeah, they probably weren't men," Williams replied, "Anyway, there's no license plate on the back of the truck. At least not while it was in the view of the cameras. I did get a name off of the truck though. On the bottom, left corner is Smith Renting. I looked them up and they're a DC based company that rents trucks out to people to move things or do whatever they need to do. Like U-haul, but smaller. You are only allowed to travel in Virginia or Maryland with the trucks, and there's tracking devices on all semi's to make sure no one goes out of that area."

Gibbs nodded, "That's really good work, Williams. Thanks."

Williams smiled, "No problem. Let me know if you need anything else."

"Yeah, I will."

Williams walked off, going back down to cyber-crimes.

"I will go down to Smith's and see how many semi's they have rented out in the past twenty four hours."

"Narrow it down to women, possibly a group of women, but don't count out the ones who came in alone."

"Gibbs, do you really think two, average sized women could take down, _and carry_, Tim and Abby? They are both tall and strong."

Gibbs shook his head, "Never underestimate the strength of a woman, Ziva… You should know that better than anyone."

Ziva nodded, then got her gear and began to head out.

"Wait for Tony," Gibbs said, "You two go together."

"Yes, Gibbs. Where is he?"

"Bathroom."

Ziva smiled slyly, walked over to his desk, and got his gun, badge, and ID out of his drawer. She looked over at Gibbs who eyed her suspiciously, "We need to hurry. I will take his things to him… Give him a little surprise."

"Mhm."

She began to walk off.

"Ziva," He called out as he sat down at his desk.

She turned, "Yes, Gibbs?"

"Twenty nine hours and eighteen minutes."

Ziva's smile faded, "Yes, Gibbs."

Gibbs sat back in his chair as he thought. He thought about two of his team members being stuck in the back of a semi, losing oxygen, not being able to breathe. Abby, his surrogate daughter, and Tim, his surrogate son, both trapped.

Gibbs was a confident man. Rarely did he show fear, and rarely did he get nervous. His palms didn't sweat, and he was always confident that his team would rescue the victim, if they were still alive, and catch the bad guys. But now, part of those people, those people who caught the bad guys and rescued the victims, _were_ the victims.

Time was running out. Yes, they had had to work with less time on their hands before, but this… this was different.

His gut was yelling at him. Telling him that this would get worse, before it got better. Gibbs took a deep breath and wiped his sweating palms on his pants…

He was nervous…

He was scared.

* * *

><p><strong>What did you guys think of the new episode? I'm getting more and more annoyed with Ziva being so nosey. I also thought Gibbs acted a bit childish when Tony came to talk to him in his basement. Unless I missed something, Gibbs was out of line. I wish the actual case would have gotten more attention than it did. Everyone was so focused on Barrett and her name would come up and the most unnecessary times. I liked that McGee pretty much admitted his jealousy about Abby and Cade. When Abby said he was jealous, he didn't deny it like they usually do when the other one is going out with someone. The McGee and Abby scenes were cute. For some reason I do not get annoyed with them like I do the Tiva scenes. Those seem to be a bit forced to me nowadays.<strong>

**Well, now that I've finished my unnecessary, and probably unwanted, rant: Thanks for reading and reviewing!**


	7. Less Time

"Hello, I'm Eric Smith. How are you today?" A happy man in his mid-forties asked as Tony and Ziva entered the building, "Are you two newlyweds looking for a truck to move your things into one house?"

Tony and Ziva glanced at each other, then pulled out their badges, "We're not together," Tony said as they walked up to the counter and showed him their credentials, "We're NCIS agents, DiNozzo and David."

"NCIS?" The man repeated in question form, clearly clueless to the name.

Ziva sighed inwardly, "Naval Criminal Investigative Service. We are here about some women who recently rented a truck from your place."

"Uh, ma'am-"

"Agent David," She corrected.

He nodded, "Agent David, we get quite a few women in here all the time. Actually, we get more women than men… Most of them are in the middle of a divorce."

"This may be a group of women that came in together," Tony continued, "Three, possibly four."

Eric thought for a moment, "Two days ago there were three women who came in and rented a truck. They paid, in cash, to rent it for a week. Said they had a couple of fragile items they needed to move."

"Please tell me you have video surveillance set up in here," Tony said.

"I do. I can get you the tapes from that day," He replied, then went into a room in the back.

"'A _couple_ of fragile items,'" Tony repeated as he and Ziva looked at one another.

"I believe those three women are the ones we are looking for."

"So do I." Tony looked at his watch, then counted the amount of time they had left.

"We still have quite a bit of time," Ziva said, noticing the worried look on his face.

Tony sighed, "I know."

Eric returned with three videos, "These are all the tapes from the day they came. They should be on tape two, but you can take all three of them, just in case."

Ziva smiled, "Thank you."

Tony took the tapes and began to leave, but Ziva didn't move.

"Do you mind if we have a look at your trucks?" She asked.

Tony turned around, looking confused.

"Of course not. I'll show you around. Follow me."

Tony caught up to Ziva as she followed Eric outside through a back door, "Why are we looking at the trucks?"

"Because, I want to see exactly what McGee and Abby are in."

"If you don't mind me asking," Eric began, "What is this about?"

"Two of our co-workers were drugged and kidnapped by these women. They were thrown into the back of the semi and are now being left to suffocate and die," Ziva replied, very matter-of-factly.

He stopped and stared at her, "Wow… That's- that's terrible. I'm so sorry."

"Their not dead yet," Tony replied, "We just need to find them. Soon."

"Of course." Eric began walking again, "All of my trucks are the same. Same size, everything." He led them to one of the many trucks that were lined up. He opened the back so they could see inside.

"What's the opening on the side for?" Tony asked.

"Some things need to have air when being moved."

Tony stared at him, giving him a questioning look.

"I know, sounds weird, but it's true. When I first started the business I was asked, a lot, if my trucks had any openings on them. They didn't at first, but I added it to all of my trucks about a year ago. There's a cover on the side that you can slide over and close the opening, in case it's raining, or you just want it closed."

Ziva climbed into the truck, "Will you shut both the door and the opening?"

"What are you doing, Ziva?" Tony asked.

"Seeing." She looked at Eric, "Close it, please."

He nodded, "Okay." First he closed the door, shutting her in. Then he walked over to the small opening and closed that as well. "What's your partner doing?"

He sighed, "Checking things."

"You know what?" Eric asked, then continued without waiting for an answer, "I don't know why I forgot this. I don't remember the name of the woman who actually paid for the truck, but all of my trucks have different numbers on them. I can give you a list from that day if that'll help. Then, once you figure out who the right woman is, I can track the truck. I put a locator on every one of my trucks."

"That's a lot of help," Tony replied, a feeling of positivity running through him.

"I'll go get it now. When she's ready to come out, just pull the latch and push up."

Tony nodded, "Okay."

* * *

><p>Ziva stood inside of that pitch black truck. She couldn't see a thing. She thought about there being two people inside, and, knowing Abby, calling out for help, losing oxygen in the process.<p>

She walked from one end of the semi, to the other. Back and forth, back and forth.

She shook her head, multiple thoughts running through her mind.

After a couple of minutes she banged on the door, "I am ready," She called out.

Tony pulled the latch, then pushed the door up.

Ziva jumped down, "They do not have as much time as we thought," She said to Tony.

"What do you mean?"

"I can not say for sure, but based on common sense, I would say they had about twelve hours left… maybe."

"Ziva, you just knocked seventeen hours off of our time!" He exclaimed.

"I know that, Tony! But I also know what it is like in there. There is no way they have twenty-nine hours left!" Ziva looked around, "Where is Eric?"

"Getting us a list of names from people who came in and rented a semi two days ago. We match a name to a truck then he can show us where the truck is at."

"That is good. That should not take much time."

"It better not," Tony replied with a sigh.

* * *

><p>Another hour passed by. Abby was sitting on the floor, her head leaning against the truck door. She continued knocking on it, but no longer yelled. Her throat was dry and she was getting tired.<p>

She looked back at Tim's outline at the other end of the truck. Neither of them had spoken since their argument, "What are you doing?" She asked, breaking the silence.

"Sitting."

"I know that… I meant, what are you thinking?"

He shrugged, "I don't know."

She sighed. Again there was silence.

About a minute later she sighed again, "I have to pee."

Tim snorted at the randomness of the statement. He quickly wiped the smile off of his face and cleared his throat. "So pee," He replied.

"Where am I supposed to do that?"

He threw up his arms, "I don't know, pick a corner."

If she could have seen his eyes from across the room, she would have glared at him, "Are you kidding me? I can't just pee in a random corner!"

"Well, there's not exactly a bathroom anywhere nearby, so I don't think you have a choice."

She crossed her arms and sat there for a few minutes, but there was no way she could hold it any longer. She stood up, "Turn around."

"What?"

"Turn around!"

"Abby, I can barely see you-"

"Turn around!" She demanded.

He sighed and scooted himself around until he was fully turned. _'We better get out of here soon.'_

* * *

><p>Ziva had spent an hour going over the video. Fast forwarding through men who came in and slowing down every time a woman entered. It seemed to take forever to get to the group of three women, but when she did, she was shocked by who she saw.<p>

"Gibbs, Tony, look!" She put the video up on the plasma, "These women look familiar to you?"

They watched for a moment.

"Oh my God!" Tony exclaimed, "The men that were found in the semi's... Those are their wives!"

* * *

><p><strong>Ugh! I have not felt well today! I hate feeling icky! It's so annoying.<strong>

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter... You know what's annoying? When you're working on two stories and you have two other story ideas stuck in your head that won't get out! There is no way I am going to tackle four stories at once! NO WAY! The other two will have to wait their turn!... It's still annoying though :P**


	8. Breathe

"So, wait," Tony said, obviously confused, "The wives killed their husbands, too?"

"What about wife number one?" Gibbs asked, forgetting her name.

"Jane," Ziva told him.

"Yeah, Jane. Why isn't she there? If they're killing their husbands, then where is she?"

Tony shrugged, "Maybe she couldn't come?" He guessed.

Gibbs shook his head, "Something doesn't feel right."

"Gut tellin' you something, Boss?"

"Yeah, I just don't know what yet," He walked to his desk and grabbed his gear.

"Ziva, you're with me. Tony, go to Jane's house. If she's there, talk to her. See if she knows anything. If you think she's a part of this, bring her in!"

Tony nodded and walked to the elevator with Gibbs and Ziva, "Where are you two going?"

"To visit our suspects homes, although I have a feeling they won't be there. Ziva, get a-"

"Warrant," She finished, her cell phone already to her ear, "On it."

* * *

><p>Tony knocked on Jane's door.<p>

Jane's husband wasn't in the military. NCIS hadn't gotten the case until victim two, almost a month later. Since that time, all four agents had talked to Jane quite a bit.

It took a moment, but she came to the door and answered. She remembered Tony immediately, "Hello, Agent DiNozzo," She said, a small smile on her face, "What brings you here?"

"I needed to ask you some questions. Do you mind if I come in?"

"Of course not," She replied, moving out of the way so he could come inside.

He entered and she shut the door behind him, "Let's go into the living room," She said, leading the way.

They both sat down, and Tony got started, "How have you been?" He asked.

She took a deep breath, "Some days are tough, but others are okay. It has been five months, but sometimes it feels like yesterday. How is the case going?"

"We're working on it," Tony assured.

She smiled, "That bad?.. What questions did you need to ask?"

"Have you talked to any of the other women who lost their husbands recently?"

"The ones whose husbands were killed the same way as mine?"

He nodded.

She shook her head, "No. I've never talked to any of them. I don't even know their names. Why?"

"We have proof that the other wives, Gina, Brittany, and Donna, have kidnapped two of our co-workers. One agent and our forensic scientist."

"Oh my God," She replied, genuinely shocked, "That's terrible."

Tony saw her reaction. Doing this job as long as he had, he could usually tell when an emotion was fake… and Jane's wasn't. She wasn't a part of this.

"Do you… do you think they killed my husband?"

"We don't know, Ma'am."

"I wish I…" Her voice trailed off and she looked as though she was in deep thought.

"Is something wrong?"

"I got a phone call, two weeks ago. I wasn't home, but whoever it was left a message. It was a woman. She sounded angry, saying how my husbands killer should have been found already. She said that if the agents working on the case had done their jobs, then three other men wouldn't have had to die. She said that she and a couple of other women were going to get together and make sure that that happened... That the man would be found," She shrugged, "I thought she was talking about wanting to make a website for them, or get on America's Most Wanted, or something. She left a number, but I deleted the message… That was one of my bad days and I just didn't want to hear anything about my husband being gone."

It took a moment for Tony to put two and two together, but once he did, he got up quickly, "Thank you, Ms. Brooks, you've been a big help." They both headed to the door, "I'll let you know when I have any new information."

"Okay. Thank you, Agent DiNozzo," She opened the door for him, "I hope you find your co-workers soon… and safe."

He nodded, "Thank you. Have a good day."

* * *

><p>Gibbs and Ziva had been to Gina's house, and were now on their way to Brittany's place.<p>

Ziva's phone began to ring. It was Tony.

"Hello."

"Hey, Ziva. Jane isn't a part of this. And I think I know why the other three woman are doing this."

"I am putting you on speaker," She pressed the speaker button on her phone, "Go ahead."

"Jane said she got a phone call from one of the women a couple of weeks ago. Whichever woman it was, left a message on her phone. She said that if we had done our jobs right, then the other men wouldn't have had to die. She and a couple other women were going to get together and _make sure_ we found out who the killer was-"

"What are you gettin' at DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked impatiently.

"They're teaching us a lesson, Boss. That's why they kidnapped Abbs and Probie. They're saying we should have found the killer sooner."

Gibbs cursed under his breath.

"Where are you guys headed?" Tony asked.

"Brittany's house. Go on to Donna's place and check it out, we'll meet you there if we don't find anything here," Gibbs replied as he pulled into Brittany's driveway.

"OK."

* * *

><p>Tim wiped the sweat off of his forehead. Another two hours had passed, but it felt like two years.<p>

By now both he and Abby had had their embarrassing "I have to pee" moments, and now they just sat there. Abby had moved over by Tim, but they still didn't speak.

Abby sighed. She swallowed, barely any spit in her mouth. Tears began to fill in her eyes. She didn't know exactly why, but she started to cry. She held her head in her hands, trying to keep quiet, but she couldn't help the gasping breaths that escaped her.

Tim looked over at her dark figure. "You okay?" He asked, his voice dry and raspy.

She took a deep breath in, "Yeah."

He scooted over beside her, "No you're not."

Abby shook her head and began to cry harder, "No, I'm not," she agreed.

He put his arm around her, and she laid her head on his chest, "I'm so sorry, Abby."

"For… what?"

"For all of this. It's all my fault. I… I shouldn't have taken you out. If I wouldn't have, then-"

"No," Abby interrupted, wiping her tears away, "No, don't say that. I had a great time, Timmy… Up until the point where we got kidnapped."

"Yeah, that part sucked."

They both laughed, but it didn't last long. Soon they were both back to thinking about their impending fate.

Tim kissed the top of Abby's head. Kind of a silent reassurance that they still had a chance and that she shouldn't give up all hope.

"Timmy?" She said after a moment of silence.

"Yeah?"

"It's… It's getting harder to breathe."

He sighed and rubbed her arm, "I know."

* * *

><p><strong>Thanks for all the reviews! I love them like Abby loves the fact that Tim was jealous of her and Cade ;)<strong>

**Anyone else fear that they aren't going to make it until the new NCIS episode? How is it that days go by super fast when NCIS comes on Tuesday, yet when we have to wait a few weeks, it goes by super slow? NOT FAIR! haha**


	9. The Words

Gibbs and Ziva found nothing at neither Brittany nor Gina's houses. However, Tony was lucky at Donna's place. Just as he was kicking in the front door, she was running out the back. However, the fact that she wasn't a good runner, and she couldn't climb over her security fence fast enough, gave Tony the advantage. He caught her without a problem and, for a moment, he let himself forget that she was a woman. To him, she was just another dirtbag that he was cuffing and putting away.

* * *

><p>"Where are my people?" Gibbs asked angrily. He, Tony and Ziva had been taking turns with Donna for the past three hours.<p>

"You are the investigator, Agent Gibbs. Figure it out yourself."

Gibbs sat down and glared at her, saying nothing.

She leaned forward, "You can glare, yell, and try to intimidate me all you want, but it's not gonna work. If you would have done your job right in the first place, then you wouldn't currently be in this predicament," An evil smile spread across her face, "How is it, knowing that people you care about are dying_ right now_? They're beginning to fight for breath. Soon they'll be gasping for air, slowly suffocating… until they die. How does that feel, Agent Gibbs?"

Gibbs remained silent.

She leaned back in her chair, "You don't have to tell me. I already know. Remember, my husband died the same way? All because you couldn't find him fast enough."

Gibbs took a deep breath, stood up, and left out of the room.

Tony and Ziva met him in the hallway.

"This is pointless, Boss," Tony began, "She's never gonna tell us where they are."

Ziva crossed her arms, "I can get her to talk," She said with no doubt in her voice, "Just say the words."

"How much time is left?" Gibbs asked.

Tony looked at his watch, "A little under eight hours."

"What about the guy at the truck place? I thought he could track the truck?"

"The women turned off the tracking device. Eric is not sure how they did it. He said it has never happened before."

Gibbs sighed, "Tony, go back to Donna's place. Take a couple of agents with you. Look through everything. Try to find something that could lead us to that truck! Ziva, you do the same, at Brittany's. I'm going to Gina's."

"Gibbs, I could find out right now where they are if yo-"

"Ziva, we still have about eight hours. I'm not ready to resort to torture yet!"

"We do not know how far away the semi even is, Gibbs! We could have a longer drive than that!"

"Ziva, go!"

Ziva sighed angrily, but did as she was told.

* * *

><p>Tim and Abby were getting tired. They were both in the same spot as before. Abby's head was still on Tim's chest, but they were both slouched now. It seemed as though their energy was being drained both quickly and suddenly.<p>

It wasn't that long ago when Abby was banging on the door, yelling for someone to get them out. Now, just the thought of doing that made Abby even more tired.

Tim struggled to stay awake. There was no way he was going to fall asleep. Because, one: He wouldn't leave Abby alone like that. And two: If he fell asleep, he knew there was about an eighty percent chance he'd never wake up again.

Tim swallowed the small amount of spit that was in his mouth, "Do you… do you remember when I told you I… had a tattoo?" He asked, having to takes short breaths between every few words.

"Yeah… You showed it… to me," Abby replied sleepily.

"Well…" He swallowed again. His voice was even raspier than before, "Remember you asked me what the meaning… behind it was? I told you that there was no real meaning, I just… I just wanted one."

"I remember."

"I… lied."

Her eyebrows furrowed. She lifted her head so she could look up at him, "What are you talking about?"

"I got it… for you. To impress you," He said with a small smile.

She was still confused, "Why are… you telling me this?"

He shrugged, "Just wanted… you to know."

She laid her head back on his chest and wrapped an arm around him. Her eyes closed and she smiled slightly, "Well, it worked."

* * *

><p>Gibbs was in a back room at Gina's house. He had now been there for almost two hours… and he had nothing.<p>

Thoughts of Abby and Tim suffocating flashed through his mind. He remembered the way they found the other victims… except now it was Tim and Abby's faces instead of the men.

Suddenly the wall in front of him turned into a punching bag. He hit it as hard as he could, cursing loudly at the same time, anger running through his veins.

One of the agents that had come with him to the house, came running back, "Are you okay, Agent Gibbs?"

Gibbs looked down at his hand and saw his knuckles were bleeding, "I'm fine."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm fine! Go back to work."

"Yes sir."

Gibbs shook out his hand. The pain made him realize that the injury was probably a little more than just bloody knuckles. Things felt broken, but he didn't have enough time to care about whatever he had done to his hand.

He got out his phone and called Tony.

"Hey, Boss."

"Got anything?"

"Nope, not a thing. We-"

Gibbs hung up, then called Ziva.

"Yes, Gibbs?"

"Find anything?"

"Nothing."

Gibbs sighed, "You said to just say the words?"

Ziva had to think about what he was talking about for a moment, then she remembered, "Yes. Just say the words."

He took a deep breath, "Do it. Do whatever you have to."

Ziva nodded, "I am leaving now."

* * *

><p><strong>Random note: I have the theme song to The Office stuck in my head.<strong>

**Now that I've gotten my random note out: Please let me know what you think about chapter nine. I love reading the reviews :)**


	10. Bad Feeling

Tony met Gibbs in the bullpen, "What's going on, Boss? I left the other agents back at the house to keep looking, but it sounded urgent…" He looked around, "Where's Ziva?"

"She's in with Donna."

"I thought we agreed that that was pointless."

"She's with Donna… _alone_."

It took a moment, but Tony understood, "Oh, I see… Like, no video, no witnesses, no... anything."

"You got it."

"How long has she been in there for?"

"Ten minutes."

"Wow. Donna must be tougher than we thought."

Gibbs smirked, "Yeah."

"How long do you think it'll ta-"

"I have the information we need," Ziva interrupted as she rushed into the squadroom.

They all went to their desks and grabbed their gear, then headed for the elevator.

"Where is it?" Tony asked.

"It is at an abandoned truck stop about two hours from here. I know where it is, I will drive."

Neither Tony or Gibbs protested. If anyone could get them there quickly, it was her.

* * *

><p>"Stay awake… Abby," Tim said as he lightly smacked her arm. He could tell when she was starting to fall asleep.<p>

"It's… hot," She replied.

"I know."

"I'm… tired."

"I know, Abby… but we have… to…" His voice trailed off as he got lost in thought. Thinking clearly was becoming more and more difficult.

* * *

><p>Ziva sighed, "How long has it been?"<p>

Tony looked at his watch, "Half hour."

"It is taking too long!" She replied.

"You said we were two hours from the place, you've still got more than half your time to go… Plus that leaves about three hours over the twelve hours you said we have."

Ziva shook her head, "I have a bad feeling about this."

"You think she lied?" Gibbs asked.

"No, she did not lie, of that I am sure."

Tony leaned forward from his seat in the back, "What's the bad feeling then?"

"I do not think we have that much time."

"Well, how much time do you think we have?" Gibbs asked.

"Not enough," She replied, stepping down harder on the gas pedal.

* * *

><p><em>'This is it,'<em> Tim thought, _'I'm not gonna have another chance.'_

"Abby?"

"Hm?"

"I need… to tell… you something."

"What?"

Tim opened his eyes, but they didn't stay open long, "I… have always… loved you."

If Abby had had the strength, she would have lifted her head so she could look at him, but she couldn't, "What?"

"I… love you… as more than… a friend."

Abby's eyes filled with tears. She had felt that same way for so long, but she had been terrified to tell him, "I… love you, too."

Tim was shocked, to say the least, "Really?"

"Really."

Through his exhaustion, Tim managed to smile. It sucked that the best moment of his life, was also his worst… and possibly _last_.

"Timmy?"

Tim held onto her tighter, "Yeah?"

Abby took a gasping breath in, "Can I… go to sleep… now?"

Tears fell from Tim's eyes, "Yes. You can go to sleep… We both can."

"Okay."

* * *

><p>"How much longer?" Tony asked nervously.<p>

"We are not far away," Ziva replied as she swerved in and out of traffic, "It is just off of the next exit."

Gibbs looked over at the speedometer and saw that Ziva was going over one hundred miles per hour… She was going so fast, yet all he kept thinking was, _'Go faster! Go faster!'_

Ziva turned at the exit and headed straight for the truck stop. Gibbs had called for the paramedics to meet them there, hoping they'd get there before and get the two youngest members of his "family" out.

As Ziva made a sharp turn into the truck stop area, Gibbs and Tony both looked around. No ambulance. They were the first ones there.

"I see the truck!" Ziva called out.

She drove up to it, slammed on the breaks, and put the car in park. She didn't bother to take the keys out of the ignition.

They all got out of the car as quickly as possible and ran up to the truck.

Gibbs pulled the latch back, then pushed the door up. At the other end of the truck they saw two still bodies…

"Oh my God," Tony said in shock as he stared at two of his friends.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion as they jumped into the truck and ran over to Abby and Tim.

Ziva checked for a pulse on Abby, "She is breathing, Gibbs! Just barely, but she's breathing!"

"Get her out of here!"

Tony went to Tim and knelt beside him. He checked for a pulse and his heart dropped, "Boss!" He yelled, "Tim's not breathing!"

* * *

><p><strong>*Gasp* Did I kill Tim? I couldn't!... Could I? Hmmm... I'm evil aren't I? You know what's even worse than me? Finding out that you have graduation rehearsal on the same night that the NCIS finale airs! I mean, I have DirecTV, so I can record it... but still! I'd much rather be watching NCIS then sitting around for three hours going over graduation crap! URGH!<strong>

**Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter :) Let me know!**


	11. Waiting Game

Gibbs rushed over, "Lay him down flat!" He yelled.

Tony helped Gibbs lay Tim all the way down.

"Go help Ziva," Gibbs told Tony as he began to do chest compressions on Tim.

"What?" Tony asked in shock.

"Go help Ziva! Get Abby out of here now!"

As Gibbs gave Tim CPR, Tony turned around to help Ziva. He forced himself to go into full agent mode, and not to think about the man, who was like his little brother, lying there, practically dead.

"Grab her legs, I will get under her arms," Ziva began, "On three we lift!"

She counted to three and they lifted her, then carried her out of the semi, and laid her on the ground outside.

"Come on, Tim! Come on!" Gibbs yelled, forgetting the rest of the world around him.

Gibbs continued with the CPR for what seemed like a lifetime, but in reality was only a couple of minutes, when Tim let out one gasping breath. He didn't wake up, didn't even move… just one breath.

"Tony get in here!" Gibbs yelled.

Tony was back in the semi within seconds

"I've got a pulse, but I don't know how long it's gonna last. Where's the ambulance?"

"I hear the sirens!" Ziva yelled.

"Help me get him out, DiNozzo."

Just like with Abby, Tony lifted Tim by his legs, while Gibbs took him up under his arms.

They laid him on the ground beside Abby as two ambulances pulled up.

The paramedics came out of both ambulances quickly, one team running to Tim, and the other team running to Abby.

After giving the paramedics all of Tim and Abby's medical information, Gibbs, Ziva, and Tony decided who would go with who in the ambulance, and who would drive the car.

In the end, Gibbs went with Abby, Tony went with Tim, and Ziva drove the car.

* * *

><p>Ducky and Jimmy met the rest of the team at the hospital, and then they all had to wait. Ziva paced. Tony kept to himself, not wanting to be bothered. Gibbs kept leaving to get coffee. Jimmy sat quietly. And Ducky kept going back and forth to everyone, trying to comfort them and tell them it would all be okay.<p>

"Jethro, I think you need to talk to Anthony," Ducky said as he sat down beside Gibbs, who was downing his sixth cup of coffee.

Gibbs looked over to Tony, who was sitting at the other side of the waiting room, staring down at the ground.

"Why?" Gibbs asked.

"Because I have already tried, and he will not speak to me. Something is bothering him-"

"It's the same thing that's bothering all of us, Duck."

"No, it is not. I can tell. It is something more."

"Why do you think he would tell me about it?"

"Because, Jethro, you are like a father to him… _And_ you have a _way_ with words."

Gibbs looked over at Ducky and smirked, then, without another word, he got up and walked over to Tony.

He sat down beside the younger agent and, at first, said nothing.

"What's wrong?" Gibbs asked after a moment.

Tony looked over at him, eyebrows raised, "Are you serious?"

"Does it look like I'm kidding?" He leaned in a little closer to Tony, "You have a way of holding everything in until you explode. Don't do that now."

Tony sighed and rubbed his eyes, "I just keep thinkin'… What if we hadn't gotten there when we did? Just a couple of minutes later and they would have been… They _both_ would have been…" He couldn't finish the sentence, so Gibbs did it for him.

"Dead."

Tony nodded, "And Probie… The whole way to the hospital he would… he would stop breathing on his own. He still might not make it."

"He will," Gibbs replied quickly, "He doesn't have permission to die."

"Gibbs, we thought we still had three hours left. What if we wouldn't have gotten there for another three hours?"

"But, we didn't, Tony. We got there in time. That's all that matters. The "what if's", they _don't_ matter."

Tony took a deep breath and nodded.

Just then a doctor entered the waiting room, "Family of Abigail Sciuto."

Everyone jumped up.

"You are all related to Miss Sciuto?"

"Yes," They all answered without hesitation.

He nodded, "Alright. She is asleep right now, and probably will be for a while. We put an IV in to take care of the dehydration, but otherwise she is fine. She will make a full recovery."

They all felt a sense of relief, but not _complete_ relief.

"What about Timothy McGee?" Ducky asked.

"He's not one of my patients. You'll have to wait for his doctor."

"Can we see Abby?" Ziva asked.

"Well, like I said before, she is asleep, but you can sit with her if you want."

"Jimmy," Gibbs began as he turned towards the young man.

"Yes?"

"Go sit with Abby."

He looked surprised, as did everyone else, "Wh- what?"

"We need to wait to hear about Tim, but I don't want her to be alone. Go sit with her, and I'll let you know when we have any news on McGee."

Jimmy nodded, "Yes, Sir- Gibbs! I meant Gibbs."

"I take you to her," The doctor said, "And if any of you have any questions for me, just tell the nurses and they'll come get me."

With that, he and Jimmy walked off.

* * *

><p>They waited thirty minutes before another doctor came into the waiting room.<p>

"Family of Timothy McGee."

Again, they all jumped up.

"That's us," Gibbs said, again, no hesitation.

"I have Mr.-"

"Agent," Tony corrected.

"Yes, of course. I have Agent McGee on an IV for his dehydration," He began, then paused.

"What's the bad news?" Gibbs asked. He could tell the doctor was hesitating.

"Agent McGee is in a comatose state. And when he came in, he was going back and forth, sometimes breathing on his own, and sometimes not, so I had to place him on a ventilator."

All of their hearts dropped. There were deep breaths heard around the room as they all tried to take in the information.

"What does this mean?" Gibbs asked, keeping a straight face, even though he was falling apart inside.

"Right now, it's a waiting game-"

"What are his chances?" Tony asked, not wanting to beat around the bush.

"Fifty fifty. You can go in and sit with him if you'd like. They say not to have more than two people in the room at a time, but, if you all go in, I won't tell. You should talk to him. Some people don't believe it helps, but I do. If you have any questions, just let me know. And just tell the nurses at the desk when you want to see him, they can tell you where his room is."

They all stood silently for a moment as the doctor left.

Ducky cleared his throat, "I will go inform Mr. Palmer about Timothy's condition."

"We'll be in Tim's room, Duck."

Ducky nodded, "I shall be there once I am done."

Ducky left and again all was quiet.

After a few more seconds, Gibbs took a deep breath, "Let's go."

* * *

><p><strong>So, it's Tuesday... but who cares when NCIS doesn't come on, right? At least next week we get a promo!<strong>

**I have a song stuck in my head. It's called Generator (First Floor) by Freelance Whales. Good song.**

**Anyway, thank you all for the many reviews! We got to the triple digit mark! WOOT! Thank you soooo much! Big Abby hugs for all of you :)**


	12. Wake Up

As they walked into Tim's room they slowed down, shocked by the sight.

He looked so helpless lying there, a big machine breathing for him.

The three agents stood around his bed, staring at him in silence.

Tony cleared his throat, "Hey, Probie," He began, breaking the silence, "What's up?"

Gibbs reached across the bed and smacked Tony's head.

"Thank you, Boss."

Again, they stood in silence.

Gibbs took a deep breath. He couldn't keep looking at his youngest agent like this, "I need coffee," He said as he walked around the bed and left out of the room.

Ziva took Tim's hand in hers, "Get better, Tim. We all want you to wake up and get better." She could feel her emotions starting to take over, so she quickly excused herself from the room.

Now it was just Tony and Tim.

Tony turned to make sure no one was around, then he walked up closer to Tim.

"Hey, McGoo. Zee's right, you know. We all want you to get better… The doctor said Abby's gonna be fine, so that's good news." Tony stopped to look back again, and make sure he was still alone, "Gibbs gave you CPR. I'll have to remember that for when you wake up, so I can joke you about practically making out with him," He grimaced at the thought, "Or maybe I'll just let that one go… Anyway, Probster, wake up soon. I hate seein' that tube down your throat… By the way, if you ever tell anyone I talked to you this much, without saying something blatantly offensive, I'll shoot you." Tony sighed and took one last look at Tim, "Later, McGee," He said before walking out of the room, just as Ducky walked in.

* * *

><p>Gibbs didn't want coffee. He was practically swimming in it already. He was going to go check on Abby…<p>

He had to go back to a completely different section of the hospital, "This is ridiculous," He mumbled as he made his way through the maze they called a hospital.

Instead of going to Abby's room, he went to the front desk.

"How may I help you, Sir?" A young nurse asked.

"I need to talk to someone about moving a family member to another room."

"Hold on one moment."

The young lady disappeared, then returned with an older, tougher looking nurse, "Sheila will help you."

"What can I do for you today?" Sheila asked.

"I want my daughter moved into my son's room."

"What's your name, Sir?"

"Leroy Jethro Gibbs."

"And what are your children's names?"

"Abby Sciuto and Timothy McGee."

She eyed him suspiciously, wondering why neither child had his last name, "Hold on. I gotta look in the computers."

As she walked away, Ziva walked up, "What are you doing, Gibbs?"

"Getting Abby moved to Tim's room."

"You can do that? They are in different sections of the hospital."

"I know."

The nurse returned, "We can't move Miss Sciuto into Mr. McGee's room-"

"Agent McGee," Ziva corrected.

Gibbs sighed, "McGee has an extra bed in his room. It's not being used, so why not _use_ it?"

Sheila crossed her arms. She had some questions that she needed answered, "You said you're their father?"

He nodded, "Yes."

"How come neither of them have your last name then? It doesn't show Miss Sciuto as having a spouse in her file, so she's not married."

"They didn't like Gibbs," He replied with a blank stare.

She gave him a "yeah, right" look and decided to ask another question… which she would soon regret, "So Miss Sciuto and Agent McGee are brother and sister?"

Gibbs shook his head, "Not by blood. In fact, I'm pretty sure they've slept together on more than one occasion."

Sheila's eyes widened. She was a tough woman, who had always stood her ground, but this was all too weird for her. "I'll, um, I'll see what I can do," She replied before walking away.

Gibbs turned to Ziva and smirked, "Sometimes it's easier to just play with their heads."

Ziva smiled, "And funner."

...Within half an hour, Abby was moved to Tim's room.

* * *

><p>Gibbs sat in a chair, between Tim and Abby's bed, facing away from the door. Abby was to his right, and Tim to his left.<p>

He had sent the rest of the team back to work. Even though they didn't want to go, they agreed once he brought up finding the other two women. They wanted to find Brittany and Gina now more than ever.

Gibbs kept looking back and forth between Tim and Abby, waiting for movement from either one. He didn't really expect Tim to wake up, not right now, but he wasn't going to leave until he at least had the chance to talk to Abby.

* * *

><p>For three hours he sat, waiting. Then Abby's eyes began to open.<p>

Gibbs quickly got up out of his chair, pulled the separator so she wouldn't see Tim right when she woke up, and stood beside her. He rubbed her arm, "Hey, Abbs," He said as she opened and closed her eyes.

Her eyebrows furrowed, "G- Gibbs?"

"Yeah, it's me."

She opened her eyes again, blinking repeatedly to get rid of the fuzziness, "Am I dead?" She asked, her voice dry and raspy.

He smiled, "No, you're not dead."

"How?"

"Ziva got the information we needed from one of the women who kidnapped you."

"You… you found us?"

"Yeah, we did. You're in the hospital."

She was starting to become more alert now, "Thirsty."

Gibbs got a cup of ice chips off of the tray beside her, "Here you go," He said, handing her the cup, "Just one at a time."

She nodded and put a piece of ice in her mouth. After a moment, her eyes suddenly widened, "Tim!" She exclaimed, sitting up a little more and looking around, "Where's Tim?"

"Calm down, Abby."

Tears started to form in her eyes, "Where is he? He's not dead is he? No, he can't be!"

"Abby! He's not dead."

She sighed in relief, then rested back against her pillow, "Where is he?"

"Right on the other side of the curtain," Gibbs replied.

"He's right over there?" She asked, pointing to the pulled curtain.

"Yeah."

She smiled, "Well move the curtain so I can see him! Is he awake or is he still asleep? Is he-"

Gibbs sat down beside Abby on her bed, then took her hand in his, "Abby…"

Her smiled disappeared, "What is it, Gibbs?"

"He's in a coma, Abbs. And he's on a ventilator."

She shook her head and the tears returned, "No. No, Gibbs! Let me- Let me see him!"

"Abby, I don't think that's a good idea."

"I don't care! I want to see him!"

Gibbs sighed, knowing he'd never win that argument. He got up and pulled back the curtain.

The sight made her begin to cry immediately, "Timmy."

Gibbs returned to Abby's side, "He's not dead, Abby. He'll be okay."

"You don't know that," She replied, never looking away from Tim.

"Yes, I do. He's a fighter. He knows none of us would forgive him if he died. He'll be okay."

Abby took a deep breath, something she hadn't been able to do for a long time, "I'm… I'm a little tired. I think I'm gonna go back to sleep."

"You sure?"

She nodded, "Yeah. Thanks… thanks for being here when I woke up Gibbs," She said, smiling as tears still rolled down her cheeks.

He bent down and kissed her forehead, "I'll be back later, okay?"

"Okay."

Gibbs left out of the room, taking one last look back at his two co-workers, that were really so much more than just co-workers to him.

Once Abby knew Gibbs was gone, she slowly swung her legs around her bed so she was sitting up, facing Tim. She held onto her IV stand as she stood up, her legs feeling like jelly. She took a hold of the chair that Gibbs was sitting in earlier and pushed it closer to Tim's bed, then sat down.

She took a hold of Tim's hand, holding onto it tightly. "Hey, Timmy," She began, smiling to hide her sadness, "We're safe now, so you can- you can wake up now… I mean, you can't… you can't leave me. Not right after you tell me how you feel about me… and I tell you how I really feel about you. You know how hard doing that is for me." The smile left her face. She bent down and kissed the top of Tim's hand, "Come on, Timmy, wake up," She said, tears starting to fall again, "I love you."

* * *

><p><strong>I know I say this every time I have a hospital chapter, but: I hate writing hospital chapters! haha It irks me to no end.<strong>

**Anyway, hope you guys liked it :)**


	13. Expect Miracles

After three days, Abby was released from the hospital, but she didn't leave. She stayed right by Tim's side. The only times she left was to get something to eat or drink, go to the bathroom, or take a shower… which she did _at_ the hospital.

A full week passed with no change from Tim. Everyday the team came to visit. To sit with him for a while… and all it accomplished was a feeling of depression afterwards.

Tony would usually visit a bar after leaving the hospital. And, when Ziva could, she would follow him and take him home. Gibbs would go to his basement and work on one of his projects. Ducky would go to the hospital chapel and say a prayer. And Jimmy would call his mom or his girlfriend, just to have someone to talk to.

Vance even visited a couple of times. He didn't stay long, and he didn't say much. He just told Abby that she could have as much time off as she needed. They all missed her at NCIS, but he understood that she wanted to stay with Tim.

Abby would read to Tim when they were alone. Ducky had brought her a bunch of books. Some that Tim would like, and some that she would enjoy. Sometimes she read books like The Catcher in the Rye or Moby Dick… but that would only last for a couple of chapters, then she'd turn to Dr. Seuss. His books always made her feel better, and she hoped it made Tim feel better as well.

* * *

><p>"They are probably long gone now," Ziva said as she and Tony looked at photos of Brittany and Gina on the plasma.<p>

"Well, we could probably ask Donna where they might be… if she wasn't still so traumatized," Tony replied, eyeing Ziva.

Ziva shrugged, "We needed to find out where Tim and Abby were at. I did that, and I do not regret my methods."

Tony sighed, "I don't regret them either… I just wish these two hadn't gotten away."

"They didn't get away," Gibbs chimed in as he entered the bullpen.

"Boss, it has been a week, I'm pretty sure they're gone."

Gibbs shook his head, "They're not gone, DiNozzo. They want justice for their husbands. They wouldn't leave town until they knew their husbands killer was found."

"So, what do we do, Boss? The bolos aren't bringing in any calls. They're definitely not going back home. No one in their families know their whereabouts-"

"Well, I guess we just say forget it and move on, DiNozzo," Gibbs replied with a glare.

Tony retreated to his desk, "Or, I can print out bunches and bunches of papers with their faces on it, and pass them around."

"Paint the town with them," Gibbs demanded, very seriously, "Do whatever you have to do until you find them!.. Both of you!"

"Yes, Boss."

"Yes, Gibbs."

* * *

><p>Abby was sitting in what had become <em>her<em> hospital chair, falling asleep. It was the middle of the day, but she hadn't slept well the night before. Nightmares of being back in the semi had interrupted her sleep multiple times during the night.

She had her hand intertwined with Tim's, and her head resting on his bed.

She was almost asleep when she felt a squeeze on her hand. Her head popped up and she waited. She waited to make sure she didn't imagine the feeling.

She stared at Tim's hand, and a few seconds later his fingers twitched.

Abby's heart began to pound, "Come on, Timmy. Come on, wake up! Wake up!" She said in a whispered squeal.

His fingers twitched once more, then she felt his hand squeeze hers again.

"Come on, come on, come on."

A few seconds later his eyes popped open, and he began to make a wheezing sound. He looked around frantically, confused as to what was going on.

Abby began talking to gain his attention, "It's okay, Tim. It's okay! I'm gonna get the doctor, okay? Just stay calm."

Tim heard her, but he was still panicky. He was trying to swallow, but couldn't. Trying to talk, but couldn't. Wanting to rip the tube out of his throat, but knew that was a bad idea.

The doctor rushed in, along with a nurse, and began talking to Tim to calm him down so they could take out the tube.

Abby got out her cell phone, not caring about the 'no cell phone' policy of the hospital, and called Gibbs immediately.

* * *

><p>Tony and Ziva were on their way back from following a lead that, well, led nowhere. Ziva kept looking over at Tony, waiting for him to say something as he drove.<p>

"I do not like it when you are this quiet," She said, breaking the silence.

"I thought you didn't like it when I talked too much."

"I don't."

"Well, then there's just no pleasing you is there?"

She sighed, "I would rather you were talking, then being a bute."

He glanced over at her, "_Mute_."

"Yes, that. What is on your mind?"

"What do you think?"

"…He will be okay, Tony."

"It's been a week, Ziva, I'm not expecting any miracles."

Ziva laughed humorlessly, "You? Giving up hope in one week? I have heard of people being in a coma for years, then waking up. A week is _not_ that long."

"Well, I don't want to have to go sit by Probie, every day, for years, waiting for him to wake up."

"So, what? You are just going to stop visiting him? Stop being there for him?" Ziva asked, shocked and appalled, "Just pass by the hospital and go straight to the bar after work? Is that what you're going to do?"

"Why not? It's better than sitting around, watching him… do nothing. He's not even breathing, Ziva! That stupid machine is doing it for him!"

"I can not believe I am hearing you talk like this-"

"Well, then you shouldn't have asked me what was on my mind."

Ziva was about to respond when her phone began to ring. She looked at the caller ID and answered, "Yes, Gibbs?"

_"Where are you?"_

"On our way back to NCIS."

_"Not anymore. Go to the hospital. Now!"_

"What is-" He hung up before she could finish.

"Tony, Gibbs said to go to the hospital."

"Why?" He asked nervously.

"I do not know, he hung up before I could ask."

Tony pressed down hard on the gas pedal and began swerving around cars to get to the hospital as fast as possible.

* * *

><p>"What's going on, Boss?" Tony asked as they met up in the hallway.<p>

"I don't know. Abby called, said to get to the hospital, it was Tim."

"She did not say why?" Ziva asked.

"Nope."

They all broke into a jog as they neared Tim's room.

When they walked inside the room, they froze.

Tim was sitting up in bed, chewing on an ice cube.

Ziva smiled and turned to Tony, "Still not expecting any miracles?"

* * *

><p><strong>Nope, I didn't kill Timmy! I couldn't do that! Not when they have professed their love for one another :)<strong>

**Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Thanks for the reviews!**


	14. Lucky Day

"Guys! Guys! He's awake!" Abby said happily as she jumped up from her chair and ran over to them.

"We see that, Abbs," Gibbs replied.

"Well, come on!" She said, motioning for them to head to his bed.

Ziva walked up to him first and gave him a hug, "Hello, McGee. It is good to see you awake."

Tim smiled, "Good to be awake," He whispered, his voice sounding dry and sore.

Tony came up to him next, looking both shocked and happy. He patted him on the shoulder, "'Bout time, Probie. You made us wait long enough."

"Payback… for you always… making_ us_ wait."

"When do I do that?"

"Every day," Ziva replied, "You are constantly late to work, late coming back from lunch, late-"

"Rhetorical question, Ziva."

Gibbs stood at the foot of the bed, "Feeling okay, McGee?"

"Throats sore… little tired… but I'm alive, so I'm good."

"The doctor gave him some medication that's making him a little drowsy," Abby explained, "He was kinda flaley when he woke up."

They all looked at her.

"Flaley?" Ziva questioned, "Is that an American word that I do not know?"

"I've never heard of it either," Tony replied.

"Flaley, you know," Abby started wiggling her arms. They continued to stare at her, confusion on their faces, "Well, do you have a better word for it?"

They all began using real words to describe what she attempting to say.

"Restless?"

"Fidgety?"

"Squirmy?"

"Uneasy?"

"Nervous?"

"Jumpy?"

"Jittery?"

"Confused?"

Tim even chimed in, "Agitated."

Abby sighed and put her hands on her hips, "Well, sure, if you want to use _real_ words," She mumbled.

Tim sat his cup of ice chips on his tray. His eyes were starting to feel heavy. He tried to keep them open, but they seemed to have a mind of their own.

Gibbs noticed this, "Well, we gotta go."

"Boss, we just got here," Tony replied, then noticed the glare on Gibbs' face that said "I'm slapping you in my head right now".

"Right Boss, time to go."

Tim didn't want them to go, but he was barely even alert anymore. Plus, he knew they'd have plenty of time to catch up later on. "Good to see you all," He said, his eyes closed.

"You too, Tim," Gibbs replied.

Ziva kissed his forehead, "See you soon, McGee."

"Later, Probie."

Gibbs motioned for Abby to follow them out.

"You couldn't have told me that he was _awake_ when you called me?"

"Yeah, you had us scared to death, Abby" Tony added.

"I'm sorry," She replied innocently, "But I used my high-pitched happy voice, I thought that was enough."

Gibbs sighed, "Your high-pitched happy voice sounds a lot like your high-pitched scared to death voice, Abbs."

"Oh… well, now that you know he's okay, you're happy, right?"

"Of course we are, Abby," Ziva said with a smile, "This is very good news."

"Did you get to talk to him much?" Tony asked.

She shook her head, "No. The doctor gave him the meds pretty soon after he woke up, so he has been drowsy _since_ he woke up. He's just eaten a lot of ice."

"Well, we're gonna get back to work," Gibbs leaned over and kissed Abby's cheek, "We'll be back later on."

She nodded, "Bye, guys."

"Bye."

* * *

><p>Vance was waiting in the bullpen when Tony, Ziva, and Gibbs arrived. He saw the look of relief on all of their faces.<p>

"How's McGee?" He asked, figuring that's where the agents had been.

"Awake," Gibbs replied, "He's gonna be okay."

"That's good to hear," Vance said with a nod. A slight smile spread across his face, "Today must be you guys' lucky day. I have some more good news for you."

"What?" Tony asked.

"Interrogation rooms two and three. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised by who is inside of them."

They all looked around at each other, knowing the answer to the question that was, no doubt, about to be asked.

"Brittany and Gina?" Tony asked.

Vance nodded, "We got a call from an anonymous source right after you left, Gibbs. She saw one of the posters Agent DiNozzo had posted outside of a cafe on 3rd street. She had seen them going into a beauty salon just two blocks away. I sent two agents there, and sure enough, they were both getting color treatments done on their hair."

He picked up two folders which he had set at Gibbs' desk, and held them out. Gibbs took one, and Ziva took the other. Vance looked at each of the agents, "They're all yours now," He said before walking off.

* * *

><p><strong>I know, it's short :( Sorry. I didn't want to overload it with stuff though, and I thought that was a pretty good place to end the chapter (hope I was right).<strong>

**Let me know what you thought of it :) More McAbby to come, I promise... Just gotta get through all this hospital crap first! (Have I mentioned I hate writing hospital stuff?.. oh, I have? Multiple times? Sorry about that).**

**Oh, and the spellcheck word for "McAbby" is "Scabby"... EW! lol**


	15. Back

"Put them together," Gibbs said as they walked towards interrogation.

"Together?" Tony questioned, "That's breaking one of your own rules, Boss."

"Yeah, I know that, DiNozzo."

Tony nodded, "Putting them together right away, Boss."

* * *

><p>A couple of minutes later, Gina had been moved in with Brittany.<p>

Gibbs, Tony, and Ziva entered the room together. Gibbs sat down right across from the two women, while Tony and Ziva sat on either side of the two-way mirror.

It was silent for a while... a long while. Gibbs would stare back and forth at the two women, then down at the files in front of him.

After about fifteen minutes, Gibbs took two pictures out of the file and laid them out for Brittany and Gina to see.

One was Abby, the other was Tim.

"You recognize those two?" Gibbs asked.

At first neither answered, so Gibbs asked again.

"I said, do you recognize those two?"

"It's Agent McGee and Abby Sciuto," Brittany replied.

Gibbs nodded, "Yes, it is."

"So what about them?" Gina asked.

"They were drugged, kidnapped, and thrown into the back of a semi. Left to die."

Gina sighed, "That's not our problem."

"Tony, is it their problem?" Gibbs asked calmly.

"Oh, you bet it is, Boss," He replied, leaning forward in his seat, "See, we've got you two, plus your friend Donna, on camera. We've got you renting the semi, then we've got the kidnapping. It's all there, for everyone to see."

Gina turned to Brittany, "They're lying."

"Are we lying, Ziva?" Tony asked.

She shook her head and crossed her legs, leaning back in her seat, "Nope. We do not lie to pieces of scum."

"I'm sorry," Brittany said quickly, not able to hold it in any longer.

"Be quiet, Brittany!"

"No! This was a stupid thing to do," She turned to Gibbs, tears starting to form in her eyes, "I didn't want to do it. Donna and Gina, they practically forced me-"

"We didn't force you to do anything!" Gins shot back, "You wanted to do it just as much as Donna and I did-"

"No, I didn't!"

"Yes you did!"

Gibbs slammed his hands on the table, "Shut up!" He yelled, making them both jump and gasp.

"Look at their pictures!" He demanded, "Look at them!"

They complied, both looking down at the photos of Tim and Abby.

"Those are two of the nicest, hardest workers you will ever meet. They would do everything in their power to find whoever murdered your husbands," He pointed to Abby's picture, "She was found, barely breathing. She's recovered now, but she never leaves the hospital. You know why?" He didn't wait for an answer. He pointed to Tim's photo, "Because he's still in there. I had to preform CPR on him. He was in a coma, and on a ventilator for a week before finally waking up. We didn't think he was gonna make it-"

Brittany was crying hard now, "I'm sorry-"

"I said, shut up!" He held up the pictures, right in front of Brittany and Gina's faces, "When these two come back to work, you know what they're gonna do? They're not gonna want pity, or to be babied, or to start back slowly. No, they're going to start right back, working on finding your husbands murderer. And these two, they're so nice that they're going to be the ones to remind us that you two, and Donna, are victims as well. They'll be the ones to find the line where what you did makes some sort of sense. All while us three just wish you'd rot in hell!" Gibbs got up, as did Tony and Ziva, and they left out of the room.

* * *

><p>After a week, Tim was released from the hospital. During his stay there, he and Abby didn't really have a chance to speak about what had happened while they were in the semi. Tim was usually surrounded by visitors, nurses, or doctors. And, after three days, Abby had to go back to work, although she came to the hospital right afterwards.<p>

* * *

><p>"I do not understand," Ziva began, "Why would a cat be in a bag in the first place? That seems very cruel."<p>

Tony sighed, "Ziva, it's just a saying, okay?"

"But it makes no sense. How would letting a cat out of a bag be the same as disclosing a secret?"

"Just forget I said it, Ziva."

She sat up straight in her chair and began to type, "I will look it up."

"You do that. In the mean time I will get some real work done and- Probie!" Tony suddenly exclaimed as Tim walked off of the elevator and headed for the bullpen.

Tim smiled, "Hey, Tony."

Both Tony and Ziva stood up as Tim walked to his desk and sat his things down.

"What are you doing here, McGee?" Ziva asked with a smile on her face, "You are not supposed to be back for another week."

"I cannot stay at my apartment for a full week, doing nothing. I'll go insane. Besides, I feel fine, so I figured, why not?"

"Because Gibbs'll kill ya for not takin' the time off," Tony replied.

Ziva pushed passed Tony and gave Tim a hug, "Good to have you back."

"Thanks, Ziva."

Ziva headed back to her desk, and Tim sat down… but Tony lingered.

"Tony? Something wrong?"

Tony looked around to make sure Ziva was out of earshot, and Gibbs wasn't headed their way. He bent down so he was eye to eye with Tim, "If you ever tell anyone this, I'll kill you myself, but… I've missed you, McGoo. And, I'm glad you're not dead."

Tim smiled, "Thanks, Tony. I've missed you guys too."

Tony stood back up and patted Tim on the shoulder, then went back to his desk.

A few seconds later, Gibbs walked into the squadroom. At first he passed by Tim without making the connection that Tim wasn't supposed to be there. Then, right before sitting at his desk, he back tracked.

"McGee."

"Boss."

"Why are you here?"

"To work."

Gibbs looked at his watch, "You're a week early."

"I know, but I didn't want to sit around at home. I'd rather be here."

Gibbs eyed him for a moment, "Take a deep breath," He said.

"What?"

"You heard me. Deep breath."

That had been one of Tim's problems once he woke up. He could take regular breaths, but deep ones were difficult, and often ended in a coughing fit.

Tim sighed, then took a long, deep breath. No coughing. "Did I pass?"

Gibbs grunted and nodded once, then went back to his desk.

Tim decided to take that as a yes.

* * *

><p>It was lunchtime and the bullpen was empty. Tony and Ziva had gone out to lunch with Ducky and Jimmy. And Gibbs had a meeting in MTAC with Vance.<p>

Tim had been asked, by Tony, Ducky, Ziva, and Jimmy, all individually, if he'd like to join them for lunch. He declined each time, saying he needed to catch up on some work… he didn't.

Abby was down in her lab, which is where he was headed now. She had decided to skip lunch, like him, but her reason was the truth. She actually _did_ have work to catch up on.

Tim watched her for a moment when he reached the lab door. She looked so busy… He could come back later, but he didn't want to. He needed to talk to her... and he needed to do it now.

He knocked on her already open door, then walked on in.

Abby turned towards him, and smiled, "Hey Timmy!" She said happily, then ran up to him and gave him a huge hug, "I heard you came back today, but I hadn't had a chance to come up and see for myself. Why are you back so soon?"

Tim happily returned the hug, "I just couldn't stay away," He replied, adding, _'from you,'_ in his mind.

She laughed, ending the hug so she could look at him, "Yeah, cause sitting at a desk with Tony and Ziva's bickering, plus Gibbs' head slaps, is so much better than a weeks vacation."

Tim laughed as well, "After being in a hospital for so long, I welcome all of that. I sorta missed it."

"You'll be regretting that decision by tomorrow," She replied jokingly, then she walked back to her computer.

He took a deep breath, something he no longer took for granted, "Abby?"

She turned back to him, "Yeah, Timmy?"

"We need to talk."

* * *

><p><strong>I'm horrible aren't I? So many of you have been waiting for this talk, and I cut it off! How dare I?<strong>

**Anyway, if I'm not able to update tomorrow, Happy Easter! Have a great one :)**

**Let me know what you thought of chapter 15 (I can't believe I've written 15 chapters of this story!... I had no idea I had written 15 chapters lol).**


	16. Perfect

Abby felt a lump form in her throat as she heard those words. She tried to calm her heart from beating through her chest.

She turned fully around to face him, "About what?" She asked calmly.

He took a deep breath and walked a few steps closer to her, "About when we were trapped in the semi."

"Oh. Okay."

"Is this a bad time?" He asked, becoming nervous.

She shook her head, "No, not at all."

Tim nodded, "Good," He said, inwardly wanting to punch himself for ever coming down to talk to her. "I'm… I just wanted you to know that… I'm glad I was with _you_ that night. If I had been in that semi alone, or even with anyone else, I don't think I would have lived. I probably would have passed out hours earlier and died before anyone had chance to get to me. You, uh, you kept me hanging on."

"Oh, Timmy," She replied, her heart melting.

"And those times we were fighting… I didn't mean anything I said. I wasn't thinking clearly, I guess. I would never ever _meaningly_ talk to you like that."

Abby smiled, "I know, Timmy… and I'm pretty sure I acted a lot worse than you did. I didn't mean anything I said either…" She said, then quickly clarified, "When we were fighting."

Tim smiled… Oh, how Abby loved his smile. His smile was almost like an instant calmer to her.

"Uh…" His smile faded and he looked down at the floor for a moment.

Abby went to speak, but then he looked up and started talking again, "Right before, um, we fell asleep, I told you that… that I loved you."

She nodded.

"And," He swallowed hard, "And, I want you to know that I, um, I… I meant it. I do love you."

Again, she went to speak, but he continued before she could get a word out, "And I know that you said that you loved me, too. But, I understand what you meant. You love me, like you love puppies. I get that and it's… it's okay with me," He lied.

Abby was shocked, to say the least. _'How could, after all of this time, he still think I only love him like a puppy?'_ She wondered.

She wasn't sure how to reply. That wasn't exactly what she was expecting. She was expecting something more along the lines of, _"I want you, you want me, so tell me you love me and kiss me!"_

"Okay." That's all she said. Trying to hide the fact that she was about to cry.

He nodded and smiled, but a different smile this time. Smaller, and sadder. "Okay." His phone began to ring, "Hello… Yeah, Boss, I'll be right up." He hung up, "Gotta go. Gibbs needs me in MTAC. See ya later, Abbs."

"Bye, Timmy."

He left out of the room and she slumped down in her stool, letting the tears fall freely now that he was gone.

* * *

><p>Tim sat in his apartment, staring at the screensaver on his monitor. He thought that he would feel better… <em>relieved<em>, after talking to Abby… Instead, he felt like crap.

It was nearing midnight. Rain was pouring outside. It was perfect sleeping weather, yet he didn't feel tired at all. He wished he were tired, so he could close his eyes and forget about today, if only for a few hours.

He sighed and thought about being trapped in that semi. No air. No light. Not knowing which breath would be your last. He didn't know which was worse: Almost dying, or copping out on coming so close to having a relationship with Abby. Both things terrified him. No part of him wanted to die. And no part of him wanted to live the rest of his life without the woman that he truly loves.

A knock on his door interrupted his thoughts. He looked at his watch. It was 12:01 now. He cautiously made his way to the door, wondering who would be at his apartment so late… in the pouring down rain.

He looked through his peephole, but it was too dark to see anything. The lights were out in the outside hallway. He almost didn't answer, but something in his gut told him to.

He opened the door slowly. There was Abby, soaking wet from head to toe. Pigtails dripping with water. "Hi, Tim."

"Oh my God, Abby, come in," he said, taking a hold of her arm and bringing her inside, "What are you doing here?" He asked as he closed the door behind her.

"I couldn't sleep."

"You're shivering," He said, "Let me get you a blanket, or something to change into-"

"No!" She exclaimed, shutting him up, "No. I need to talk to you."

"You can, Abby, but you can't be comfortable like that. Why don't you chan-"

"Stop talking, McGee!" She cleared her throat, "Just listen, please."

He nodded, "Okay."

"Today you came in my lab and said that we needed to talk."

"I remember."

"Well, you didn't really let me talk. You just said what you thought I would say. Now, when I said that I loved you-"

"Abby, it's okay, I get that we both thought we were going to die, so you just told me that so I'd die happy-"

"I told you to stop talking and listen, Tim."

"Sorry."

"When I said that I loved you, I didn't just say it because we thought we were gonna die. I didn't say it because I wanted you to die happy. And, I most certainly did not mean "I love you" in the way that I love puppies." Abby walked up closer to Tim, "I said I love you because… I love you. And no, it did not take almost dying for me to realize that I loved you. I knew it all along. I've known it for years. It took almost dying for me to realize that I don't want to spend another moment lying to myself about you. I don't want to keep telling myself that I don't want to be more than your friend when I know good and well that I want to be _much_ more than your friend," Tears were coming to her eyes, "I don't want eight more years to pass by and still feel incomplete because I'm not with you. I love you, Tim. I always have."

To say Tim was shocked would be the understatement of the century. He almost didn't believe what he was hearing. For a second, he even thought he might be dreaming… But this was no dream. This was real.

He took two steps towards her, closing the remaining distance between them. He put his hands on her face and, for a moment, they just stared into each others eyes. Then, he slowly leaned in and kissed her.

It was the most wonderful feeling in the world. No, it wasn't their first kiss, but it was their best kiss. It was romantic and sweet. They both felt the same way this time. It wasn't like before when Abby just wanted something casual, and Tim wanted a real relationship. Neither of them wanted this moment to end.

This time was different.

This time was perfect.

* * *

><p><strong>I can feel all of you who were hitting me before, now giving me hugs.(At least I hope so)... haha ...This chapter is all McAbby, to make up for the long wait you all have had to endure ;)<br>**

**This is my first story, that's not a one-shot, where I have made them a couple... There's a few more chapters left so I guess we will see how this goes :) Hope you all like it. Oh, and time for a poll question from me. Should the team find out about Tim and Abby? Yes or No. Let me know please, and if you have a reason for your answer (whichever it is) let me know that as well! Thank you!**

**Hope everyone had a great Easter! God bless!**


	17. Not Impossible

Tim woke up the next morning to the sound of his alarm buzzing. He reached over and turned it off, then opened his eyes. He looked over to his right, where Abby was lying beside him, sound asleep.

They had fallen asleep after talking halfway through the night… Yes, _just_ talking. They had decided that they wanted this to be completely different from the relationship they had before. No rushing into things… That sounded kind of crazy, seeing that they've known each other for eight years, but it felt right to them.

So, they sat on the bed and talked. They held hands and talked about how jealous they'd get when the other had a date, and how badly they wanted to intervene and not let the date happen. They talked about how happy they always were when the other one was around. Tim confessed to coming down to the lab to work when it wasn't necessary at all, and Abby confessed that she knew that already. They both wondered why it took so long to tell each other how they felt. Now that they were together, it seemed so right. And so easy. Like that's how it should have been all along.

Tim placed a hand on Abby's face, softly rubbing his thumb over her cheek, "Abby," He whispered, "Abbs."

Her face scrunched, "Hmm?"

"We gotta get up. We have to get ready for work."

"Cozy," She mumbled.

Tim smiled, "I know. I'm cozy too. But, if we're both late, Gibbs'll send someone to check on us, or he'll come himself… Do you really want to explain to him why we're both at my place, and both late for work?"

She groaned and opened her eyes, looking straight into his, "I guess not."

Tim smiled and intertwined his hand with Abby's, "I love you, Abbs."

"I love you, too, Timmy."

* * *

><p>They got into their separate cars and headed to work. Abby left five minutes before Tim so no one would have reason to be suspicious… However, Abby didn't have time to go home, so she had to wear the same clothes that she had worked in the day before.<p>

"Gear up! We've got another body," Gibbs said as he entered the bullpen, a cup of coffee in hand.

Tim sighed, "We should have gotten this guy already."

"We would have," Tony replied, "If three wives from hell wouldn't have kidnapped you and Abbs."

They all had their gear now and were headed to the elevator, "Well, we should have gotten him _before_ the wives felt they needed to go to such drastic measures to get our attention."

Tony sighed, "Gibbs said you'd take up for them."

The elevator doors opened and they all got inside.

"I'm not taking up for them, Tony. What they did was wrong, but they're in pain. Their husbands are gone forever, and all they see are agents who can't find the whoever killed them. They have a reason to be angry."

"That does not make what they did, right," Ziva replied.

"I know that."

They reached the main floor and headed to the car.

"Wouldn't you be angry if someone you loved was killed, then no one could give you any answers, and the man who killed that person was still free?" Tim asked.

Ziva took a deep breath, "Of course, Tim, but that does not mean that every time it takes longer to find a murderer, an agent should be kidnapped."

They reached the car and Tony and Ziva got into the back.

Tim was about to open the passenger side door when Gibbs grabbed his arm.

"McGee."

"Yeah, Boss?"

"I understand where you're coming from, but those women almost killed you and Abby. This wasn't _just_ to test the team. They were willing to let you both die, without any regrets. Think about that, okay?"

Tim nodded, "Okay, Boss."

* * *

><p>"Knock knock," Tim said with a smile as he entered Abby's lab.<p>

She turned around from her computer, a big smile on her face as well, "Hi Timmy," She saw a few bags in his hands, "What do you got for me?"

He held up one bag, "Bag number one: Victim's clothes." He sat that one down on her table and held up the second bag, "Number two: Some dirt we found in the back of the semi. And, number three: A hair found in the semi."

"I guess I'm gonna be busy," She said, walking over to the table.

"Not done. We also got about fifty fingerprints off of the semi," He added, holding up the bag filled with the tape they used to lift the fingerprints.

She sighed, "_Very_ busy."

He smiled, "I could stay and help out."

"Are you offering because you want to help, or because you want to be with me?"

He moved in closer to her, "What do you think?"

Abby laughed, "We're really cheesy when we flirt, you know?"

"Yeah, _vocalized_ flirting really isn't our thing."

"Nope." She picked up the bag of fingerprints and pressed it against Tim's chest, "Get to work."

He took the bag from her, "Yes ma'am."

* * *

><p>"Where's McGoo?" Tony asked Ziva as they sat at their desks.<p>

"The last time I saw him he was taking evidence down to Abby."

Tony looked at his watch, "That was five hours ago."

"He is probably working down there with her."

"For five hours straight? He doesn't do that unless there's some big computery thing going on… Maybe I should go down and check on them."

Ziva glared at him, "You mean spy."

He nodded and stood up, "Exactly."

Ziva sighed and rolled her eyes… at herself, for what she was about to do. She stood up and followed behind him.

"I knew you couldn't resist," Tony said with a smile.

"Oh shut up! Those two have always been close and they have now gone though a very traumatic experience together. It is only natural that they begin to show those feeling now… if that is even what they are doing."

"Uh huh. Admit it, you just wanna see if they're doin' it in the lab."

She punched his arm.

"Ow!"

"Shut up!"

* * *

><p>Tony and Ziva could hear laughter coming from the lab.<p>

"I never knew _"doin' it"_ was so funny, Tony," Ziva whispered, a sly smile on her face.

Tony glare back at her, "Well, it _is_ McGee, so…"

They waited a moment, then peaked their heads around the door. Abby and Tim were in the middle section of the lab, cleaning something off of the floor.

"What'd they do?" Tony asked curiously.

"How should I know? I am with you."

"Sh."

"You sh!"

Tim got up and helped Abby to her feet. They continued laughing and talking, but Tony and Ziva couldn't make out what they were saying.

Then, after a moment, the laughter stopped. They stared into each others eyes.

"I gotta get a picture of this," Tony felt in his pockets, "Crap! I forgot my phone!"

"Stop speaking!" Ziva said, slightly smiling at the cuteness of Abby and Tim about to kiss.

Tim leaned in and kissed Abby on the lips. It lasted about eight seconds, then they parted, said something else, smiled, and started back working.

Ziva looked over at Tony, a frazzled look on his face.

"What is it, Tony?"

"They're a… They're actually, kind of…"

"_Cute_, together?" Ziva finished for him.

"Yeah… This is gonna make joking him about it a whole lot tougher."

"So why do you not _not_ joke him about it?"

"I said tough, Zee… not impossible."

* * *

><p><strong>Wow! Thank you all so much for all the reviews! I can not believe how many I got! I'm so glad you all liked the chapter :) I was nervous writing it because I knew you guys had been waiting so long for them to get together in this story... Thanks for calming my nerves :) You all are awesome possum!<strong>

**The next chapter goes back a little bit to show things from Tim and Abby's POV... In other words, we find out what they spilled on the floor...**


	18. Backfire

"Oh crap!" Tim exclaimed.

Abby looked up from her desk and began to laugh, "What did you do?"

"Spilt water all over the floor."

"Not just the floor…" Abby replied, "You look like you peed your pants," She said as she continued to laugh.

Tim looked over at her, "Oh, you think it's funny?"

"Yes, I do."

Tim tried hard not to smile, but he looked down at his pants and couldn't help it, "Tony will never let me live this down."

"Just stay here until it dries," Abby said as she got up and grabbed some paper towels, "Come on, let's clean it up."

They got down on the floor and the laughing seemed to die down, until Abby just randomly burst out laughing again.

"What?" Tim asked, a smile on his face.

"Just… the look on… your face… when you spilled the water… It was so cute…"

"Then why are you _laughing_?"

"I don't know," She replied, "I'm just happy I guess."

Those words made Tim's heart beat faster. Just knowing she was happy, made him _so_ happy.

"I think we got it all," He said, looking over the floor to make sure. He stood up then held out his hand for Abby. She took it and stood as well. "I'll have to remember not to leave my cup of water so close to the edge of the table next time," He said, a smile still on his face.

"I don't know, it was pretty entertaining."

They both looked into each others eyes at the same moment, and held the glance. They loved each other so much. Just looking at one another made their hearts skip a beat.

Tim leaned in and kissed Abby. They could have sworn that fireworks went off every time they kissed now, no matter how cheesy it seemed. It felt that unreal… That amazing.

Tim knew it was highly inappropriate to make-out at work, but they had eight years to catch up on… So he didn't really care.

When the kiss ended, Abby smiled, "You know Tony and Ziva are watching us, don't you?"

"Yeah, I saw them out of the corner of my eye a couple of minutes ago."

"You don't care if they know?"

Tim smiled, "I don't care if the world knows."

"Me either… But, let's wait to tell Gibbs. He's under a lot of pressure right now, and with rule twelve… I just don't want him kicking you off the team."

Tim laughed, "Or killing me."

"Or killing you," Abby agreed.

With that, they headed back to work.

* * *

><p>"Hey, McTim, finally coming out of the bat cave?"<p>

"Had a lot of work to do, Tony."

"Mhm… Like what?"

Tim knew what Tony was doing… He was fishing for information. Tim could have just come right out and said that he knew Tony knew, but this would be a lot funner.

"Why do you care?"

Tony shrugged, "Just wondering… So, uh, I'm going out with this girl tonight, I met her at a bar a few weeks ago, and I was wondering if you'd like to come along? She has a friend who is coming with her, and she needs a date."

"Sure, Tony. That'd be great!"

Tony's eyebrows furrowed, "Really?"

"Yeah, I'll be there. What time?"

"I'll, uh, I'll have to check," Tony replied, turning back to his computer.

"Okay, just let me know."

"Uh huh."

Tim stood up, about to head to the break room for some coffee. When he passed by Ziva's desk, she reached out her hand and grabbed his arm.

He looked down at her and she smiled, "Congratulations," She said, knowing Tim was playing with Tony.

Tim smiled back, "Thanks."

Just then, Gibbs walked into the bullpen, "Grab your gear! Another body was found."

"You're kidding?" Tim exclaimed.

"Nope. Let's go."

They all grabbed their gear, and headed out.

* * *

><p>Tim looked into the semi. At the back was the body, lying in the fetal position. Tim wondered what his last thoughts were. He wondered if he died fighting, or if he had given up long before. Did he fall asleep like Tim and Abby did? Or was he awake as he took his last breaths?<p>

"Tim. Tim! Probie!"

Tim jumped slightly, "Yeah?"

"You okay?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Cause Gibbs told you to get in the semi and take photos about five minutes ago, and you've been standing there ever since. You sure you don't wanna sit this out?"

Tim shook his head, "No, I'm fine."

Tim hopped into the semi and made his way to the back. Shivers ran down his spine. He wondered why this seemed to hit him so hard. They had already had one other victim since Tim came back, so why was he just feeling this way now.

He took a deep breath and began to take photos, but with every picture he became more and more lightheaded. He felt like he was suffocating again.

He seemed to forget that Tony and Ziva were also in the semi, dusting for prints, looking for hair or dirt, etc…

He tried taking deep breaths, but that didn't seem to help. If anything, it made it worse.

He took a few steps backward, bumping into Gibbs, who had just walked into the semi a few seconds ago.

"Whoa, McGee! Watch it."

"S- sorry, Boss."

"Don't apologize, McGee."

"R- right," Tim cleared his throat, "I- I need… I need to get out of here for a second," He said before practically running out of the semi.

"What was that about?" Ziva asked.

"I'll go find out," Gibbs replied, "You guys keep workin'."

Gibbs got out of the truck and looked around for Tim, finding him leaning against the right side of the semi. His hands were on his knees and he was taking in deep breaths, looking like he was about to vomit.

Gibbs walked over to him and placed a hand on his back, "Come on, let's go sit over here."

Tim held up a hand, "I'm fine, Boss, I just need a minute."

"Tim, don't argue."

Tim sighed, then stood up straight, to go wherever Gibbs was taking him to.

Gibbs led him over to the back of one of the SUV's there, and lifted up the trunk. "Sit," He said, pointing to the trunk.

Tim sat down and Gibbs sat beside him, their feet dangling over the SUV.

"Talk."

Tim took another deep breath, "I'm fine."

"Don't lie to me, McGee."

Tim paused, "I… I don't understand why this is just bothering me _now_. Why didn't it bother me with the last victim?"

"Because, you had just gotten back to work then. You were just happy to be alive, nothing else. You hadn't had much time to think about what had happened to you."

"Boss, what these men went through…" Tim shook his head, "I wouldn't wish that on the my worst enemy. It was… It was horrible."

Gibbs patted Tim's shoulder, "But you've come out of it as a stronger person."

"Oh yeah, I seem really strong, don't I?"

"Yes, you do. Strength isn't having no emotion, no sympathy. Strength is in the emotion, in the sympathy. You've got that, McGee."

Tim looked at Gibbs. He had never heard him say something so… prophetic before. "Really?"

Gibbs nodded once, "Really."

"Thanks, Boss."

"Don't mention it." Gibbs stood back up, "Sit for a while, and when, or _if_, you feel up to it, come back to help out."

Tim nodded, "Okay."

Gibbs started to walk off, but stopped and turned back around, "And McGee?"

"Yeah, Boss?"

"You hurt her, I'll kill you."

It took a moment for the statement to register, but when it did, Tim's eyes widened, "Y- yes, Boss. Understood."

* * *

><p><strong>So, how'd ya like the chapter? Let me know in a review please-y wees-y...<strong>

**This story should be wrapping up soon. The main part of it was the whole Tim and Abby trapped thing (hence the name "Our Darkest Moments"). Just one or two more chapters to tie everything up in a nice, pretty package. **

**Double chest bump, and a piece sign to you all. (Yes, I am a strange cookie)...**


	19. Hacked

"He knows?" Abby asked, wide eyed.

Tim nodded, "He knows."

"But… How?"

Tim shrugged, "He's Gibbs."

"That's true… He's like a magical wizard."

"That he is."

"How did you find out that he knew?" Abby asked.

"He told me. Said if I ever hurt you, he'd kill me."

"Awe! That's so sweet," Abby replied, a smile on her face.

"Thanks…"

"Well, not that he'd kill you, that wouldn't be cool… On the other hand, it would only be under the circumstances that you had hurt me, so I'd probably be okay with it."

Tim laughed, "Well, don't worry. I have no intention of hurting you, or dying any time soon… Besides, I've kinda already done the latter."

Abby, who had been typing away as she and Tim talked, stopped and looked over at him.

"What is it?" He asked, noticing the concerned expression on her face.

"I heard about… what happened today."

Tim sighed, "Who told you?"

"No one "told" me, I just heard about it. Why didn't _you_ tell me?"

Tim shook his head, "It was no big deal."

"It's big deal to me, Timmy. We went through that together, plus we're a couple now, we shouldn't hide when things are bothering us."

"Has it been bothering you? All that we went through?"

Abby took a deep breath, then nodded, "Yeah, it has… Sometimes, when I close my eyes, I feel like I'm back there… in the semi. I hate that feeling. I feel trapped, like I can't breathe, I can't…" Her voice trailed off, unable to find the right word.

"Focus?" Tim continued for her, "It's like you know you aren't back there, but you still feel like you are. You can't put it together in your mind, and it starts to suffocate you."

"Yeah. That's exactly what it's like."

Tim nodded, "I didn't know you felt the same way I did."

Abby smiled, "Well, now you do know. So, next time something like this happens, _if_ it does, will you talk to me about it?"

"If you promise me the same thing."

"I promise."

"Me too."

Abby grinned then turned back to her work, as did Tim.

* * *

><p>A few minutes passed before Tim realized something, "The night that we were taken..."<p>

"Yeah?"

"Well, at work you said that something had happened to some tests you had run. Did you ever figure out what happened?"

"I think so," Abby replied, "I'm pretty sure someone hacked into the system."

"Into NCIS? That's crazy… Not you," He quickly added, "Whoever did it, _they're_ crazy."

She patted his back, "I gotcha Timmy, I gotcha… Anyway, whoever it was, _if_ they did it, knew exactly what they were looking for. They got in, did it, and got out within seconds."

"That last sentence sounded dirty," Tim pointed out.

"And disappointing," Abby added.

Tim laughed, "Would you like me to check and make sure that that's what happened?"

"I would love that. I shall now get to work on some dirt samples."

"Go crazy."

"I intend to."

* * *

><p>"Boss!" Tim called out as he and Abby came rushing into the bullpen.<p>

"What is it, McGee?"

Abby took over, "I was hacked, Gibbs! I was definitely hacked!"

Gibbs stood up and began giving Tim a death glare, "I told you that if you hurt her I'd-"

"Whoa!" Abby exclaimed, raising up her arms, "No one needs to die, Gibbs. Do you remember what "hacked" means?"

He thought for a moment, "That thing… with computers…"

Abby nodded, "Good job, Gibbs!"

Tim cleared his throat, "Anyway," He began, finding his voice again, "Someone hacked into Abby's computer back on the day we were kidnapped… well, the night before, actually. I thought at first that it was the women who took us. Some kind of lure to get us at a certain place at a certain time, but then I traced it back to this address," He said as he handed Gibbs a piece of paper.

"This is at least forty miles from all of the wives houses," He replied.

"I know. Whoever did this was super smart, but also _really_ dumb. He knew how to get into the system, but he didn't hide himself from us. He was practically waiting to get caught… I think this is our killer, Boss."

"Grab your gear!" Gibbs called out to the team.

Gibbs got his gear, then went to lead the way out, as always. He stopped when he got to Abby and kissed her cheek, "Good work, Abbs."

"Thanks, Gibbs. But, it was mainly Timmy."

"Well, I'm not kissin' him on the cheek, Abbs."

She nodded, "Good point."

* * *

><p>Two hours later they were back, with the killer. There had been a short gun battle with the murderer, but in the end, the team won… as they always do.<p>

Gibbs handed the man, whose name was George, over to another agent to take to interrogation, then the team headed back to the bullpen… where Abby was waiting.

She ran up to Tim, giving him the biggest hug she could manage, almost knocking him down, "Timmy, Timmy! I heard what happened. I heard he was shooting at you and the team! Are you okay? Are you hurt? Should you be in the hospital?"

"Abby, calm down. I'm fine. All of us are fine."

She pulled back from the hug, looking him up and down to see if anything seemed wrong, "Are you sure?"

"I'm positive."

"So, only your little McBoyfriend gets the hugs now?" Tony, who was standing behind Tim, asked.

Abby smiled, "Of course not, Tony," She replied, giving him a hug. Then she went to Ziva and Gibbs and gave them hugs as well.

"Well, I better get back down to my lab. I'm glad all of you are okay, _and_ that you caught the guy."

As Abby walked off, Tim went over to Gibbs, who was sitting at his desk. He didn't say anything, unsure of how to begin.

"Your desk is _across_ from mine, McGee."

"What?" He asked in confusion.

Gibbs sighed, "Why are you standing here?"

"Oh, um… Boss?"

"Yes?"

"I want to talk to them."

"Who, McGee?"

"The women."

Gibbs eyebrows furrowed, "The women that drugged, kidnapped, and almost killed you and Abby?"

Tim nodded, "Yes."

* * *

><p><strong>Yesterday was CRAZY busy, so I never had time to update. I only got to update The Hunter And The Prey because I had already finished writing the chapter the day before... Anyway, this should be the next to the last chapter :( I'm sad to end this story, but I can't wait to get another one started (although I'm going to wait until I finish THATP).<strong>

**Well, let me know if you enjoyed the chapter :) Thanks!**


	20. The Exception

It took a while, and a lot of pleading, for Gibbs to agree to let Tim talk to the three women. But, eventually Gibbs gave in, knowing Tim had to have a good reason for wanting to talk to them.

* * *

><p>Tim stood outside of the interrogation room, staring at the door. He had been standing there for five minutes now, with a folder in his hand, trying to find the courage to open the door.<p>

Gibbs, Abby, Tony and Ziva were all waiting in observation, wondering where Tim was at.

"Maybe he forgot something," Ziva guessed.

"No, he had everything he needed," Tony replied, "Maybe he decided to wait, or not to go at all."

"So he just walked off without coming to tell us he was no longer going to speak to them?"

Abby sighed, "I'll go look for him, just stay here."

Gibbs remained silent, just sipping his coffee as he waited.

Abby stepped into the hallway and looked to her right, then her left... There was Tim.

She smiled slightly, "Well, that was easy."

He blinked a few times, then looked over at her, coming out of his trance, "Huh?"

She walked up to him, "I came out to look for you. We were all wondering where you were."

"Oh. Well," Tim looked back at the door, "Here I am."

Abby placed her hand on his arm, "Are you okay, Tim?"

"I… I can't seem to move."

"You don't have to do this, you know."

Tim nodded, "Yeah, I do."

"Why?"

"Because… I need to."

"Why do you need to?"

He looked back at her, and she saw the desperation in his eyes, "Honestly?.. I don't know. I just…"

_"Need to,"_ She finished for him.

He nodded, "Yeah."

"Okay. Good enough… Can I tell you something, Timmy?"

"Anything."

"I saw those women while I was in observation. They're _just_ women. They're probably more nervous than you are right now."

"They almost killed us, Abby," He said, almost whispering, with tears in his eyes.

"I know. But they didn't. We're alive, and they're going to be in prison for a long time. If you feel like you need to talk to them, then this is your chance. It's probably the only one you'll get."

Tim took a deep breath, "I guess I better take it then."

"Yeah, you better."

Tim looked back at the door, but he just stood there. "Could, uh, could you just give me a little push?"

Abby smiled and put her hand on his back, then gently pushed him forward, making him step up to the door.

He reached out for the doorknob and turned it, then looked at Abby and smiled, "Thank you."

"Anytime."

Tim headed into interrogation and Abby went back to observation.

"You think he'll do alright?" Tony asked.

"I know he will," Abby replied.

* * *

><p>Tim sat down across from the women, laying the folder on the table in front of him.<p>

"I'd introduce myself, but I believe you already know me," He began, looking back and forth at all three women, "I know that I already know all of you, seeing as I've been working to find your husbands killer. So tell me, which one drugged me? Which one drugged Miss Sciuto? Which one stuffed their hand down my pants pocket to get my phone? Who originated the plan? And did any of you care that Abby and I could have actually died?"

It was silent, none of the girls wanted to speak first, and none of them would make eye contact.

Tim sat back in his chair, crossing his arms, "We can sit here for hours for all I care. I know what it's like to be in a closed in space for a long period of time, so I'm good… Plus, there's actually air conditioning in here which means that you guys _won't_ possibly suffocate, that's a plus… So, your choice. Sit and wait, or answer my questions."

"I drugged you," Brittany answered.

Tim nodded, "Okay, so which one drugged Abby?"

"Me," Donna replied, almost whispering.

"Alright, so that makes you, Gina, the driver."

"Seems that way," She replied, a huge chip on her shoulder.

"I got both your and Abby's phones out of your pockets," Brittany continued, "Gina originated the plan and, yes, I did care. I was told that we'd leave you all there for twelve hours, then we'd come and get you. We'd leave you guys there just long enough to scare you. I called them when the twelve hours were up, and they said that plans had changed. They wouldn't let me come and help you."

Tim looked at Gina and Donna, "That true?" He asked.

They wouldn't reply.

"I take that as a yes. I also take that as a "no, I didn't care if you died"."

It was silent for a moment, then Tim continued, "One last question. How did you guys know were Abby and I would be?" He knew he wouldn't get the answer from Donna or Gina, but he figured he could get it out of Brittany.

She hesitated at first, but answered, "I was following you. I saw you and Abby go to the restaurant and I called the others, told them to get there as fast as they could. She wasn't part of the plan… _Abby_," She clarified, "It was only supposed to be you."

Tim hid the fact that he was surprised, "That's comforting," He replied sarcastically.

Gina smirked, "She was just a bonus."

Tim fought to keep it together. That last comment made him want to reach across the table and choke the crazy woman.

Instead, Tim opened the folder in front of him and took out two photos. He laid them both out for all three women to see.

"Who are these guys?" Brittany asked.

"First of all, we found the man that murdered your husbands."

"You did?" Donna asked in surprise.

Tim nodded, "But, he had the chance to kill these two men, _before_ we caught him. They were both killed after Abby and I had been found."

"What's that got to do with us?" Gina asked.

"Everything," Tim replied, "See, your husbands murderer hacked into NCIS and changed some tests that Abby had ran the day before. We didn't know what had happened, and it made Abby upset, which is why I took her to dinner that night. The next day I would have come in and looked through the computer system and found the murderer right then. But, instead he had the chance to kill two more innocent men because none of you had patience to wait and let us do our jobs. Two more men died because of you three." He saw the horrified look on all three women's faces, "And you'll all have a lot of time to think about it prison."

Tim stood up and opened the door, where three officers were waiting to escort the women back to prison, "You can get them," He said and moved out of the way.

The officers handcuffed the women then led them out.

Instead of going into observation, Tim went back into the, now empty, interrogation room and sat back down, seemingly in deep thought.

* * *

><p>"Wow," Tony said, genuinely shocked by how Tim handled things. Observation had been completely silent up until that point.<p>

"Yes," Ziva agreed, "He did very good."

Gibbs nodded. Inwardly he was saying how proud he was of Tim. Telling him he had come a long way from his days as a newbie.

"What's he doing?" Tony asked, "Why is he just sitting there?"

"I'll go talk to him," Abby replied, then headed out of the room.

She walked down the hallway and entered into interrogation. "Hey," She said with a smile as she walked over and sat down across from him.

He gave her a small smile, "Hey."

"You okay?" She asked.

He nodded, "Yeah. I was just thinking."

"About?"

He reached one of his hands across the table and took a hold of Abby's, gently rubbing his thumb over the top of her hand, "No matter how angry I am at them, and I am _very_ angry… If it wasn't for them, we wouldn't be a… a _we_," He said, laughing slightly.

Abby nodded, "I know. Its weird to think about, but it's very true."

Tim shook his head, "It took one of my darkest moments to realize that I didn't want to lie to you, or myself, anymore… Is it weird to kind of be thankful for what happened? I mean, I'd never want anyone to go through what we went through, but-"

"No, it's not weird. It may not make sense to most people, but I get it. I'd rather not have to live with those memories of being trapped in that place, but I wouldn't change the outcome."

Tim smiled, "Me either."

Tim stood up and walked over to Abby, who stood up as well. He put a hand on her face, "I love you," He said as he stared into her eyes.

Abby wrapped her hands around his waist, "I love you, too," She replied.

He leaned in and gave her a kiss, which she happily accepted and returned.

It lasted about six seconds, then the intercom was turned on, "McGoo and Abby sittin' in a tree, k-i-s-s-i Ow! Thank you, Boss."

Tim and Abby had jumped back from each other when Tony had started talking… or _singing_ rather. They had both forgotten anyone was in the other room, especially that Gibbs was there.

Gibbs stepped up to the intercom, "Rule twelve still stands… You two are just the exception," He stared at Tony and Ziva, "The _only_ exception," he made very clear.

"Of course, Boss," Tony answered.

"I do not want him," Ziva replied quickly.

Gibbs turned back to the intercom, "And if I ever catch you two makin' out again, I'll fire you both," He added, trying to hide the smirk on his face.

Tim cringed, "Never again, Boss."

Abby smiled, "No promises."

* * *

><p><strong>THE END!<strong>

**This was not where I was originally going to end it, but I liked this ending better than going on any longer with it.**

**Thank you all for the reviews, favorites, and alerts! It means so much to me. I'm going to be finishing The Hunter And The Prey pretty soon, then I'm going to get started on my next story entitled Triangle... It's VERY different from the suspense/angst stuff I'm used to doing. Triangle is a family/drama story... We shall see how it goes! *Fingers crossed***

**Thanks again, and God bless!**

Return to Top


End file.
